Finchel's Summer of '10
by JustAHumbleWriter
Summary: A series of short stories based around the various 'dates' Finn and Rachel spent together over the course of their first summer together following Sophmore year. Mostly soppy and funny. Reviews welcome.
1. The Second First Date

**Note: **_I decided to make this into a multi-chapter work because I liked the idea of writing a series of stories set in Finn and Rachel's sophmore summer and keeping them in one place. So each chapter designates a separate occasion where Rachel and Finn are together. Review's welcome._

**P.S**. You'll note that Finn mentions living with Kurt and Burt; I just assumed, following Theatricality, that he moved back in again and they're all a nice family.

* * *

><p><strong>The (Second) First<strong>** Date**

It was Friday afternoon; Finn had just got home from his last day of school. Flinging his shoes off and then placing his bag down in the hall, he made his way up to his room. He switched on the TV and slumped down onto the bed. Nothing good was on. Nothing good was ever on. He switched the TV off again and rolled over to lie down. All of a sudden he heard a ringing which prevented him from slipping into a nice nap. Turning over with great effort, he eyed the caller ID; 'Rachel'. Pulling the phone to his ear, he answered it.

"Hey Rachel, what's up?" he groaned, a little too sarcastically than he had intended.

"Hi Finn. Um...I was just wondering whether you wanted to go out this weekend?" her voice seemed tentative and nervous. He wondered whether his sarcastic tone had put her off. He sat up on his bed and smiled to himself.

"Yeah! Sure Rachel. Sounds awesome" He could hear her giggle slightly down the phone.

"Ok. Brilliant. Well I think we should have dinner at Breadstix on Saturday night. You should pick me up at 6pm and you should drop me off home no later than 9pm. Does that sound good?"

"Sounds great. I'll pick you up at 6pm." He said, the smile still etched to his face.

"Ok. I'll see you then. Bye Finn."

"Bye Rachel" She hung up first as Finn sat in his room smiling to himself. He loved being with Rachel, as she always seemed to plan their dates for him. It made his job so much easier. He lay back down again, hands behind his head, staring up at the ceiling.

Ever since his declaration of love to her at Regionals, Finn had felt nothing but appreciation for Rachel. It had been a strange year. For a while he had been mad at Puck and Quinn, but now he realised that, since the whole baby drama, he didn't have any problems anymore; they did him a favour. He didn't have the pressure of a baby to look after, and his break up with Quinn had led him towards the love of his life; Miss Rachel Barbara Berry. He sniggered to himself as he settled into a game of COD on the Xbox. He was looking forward to his date tomorrow.

* * *

><p>It got to 5:30pm and Finn was already dressed and ready. He'd opted to wear a smart shirt-and-jean combo (that was earlier approved by Kurt) as he knew Rachel would want him to look nice on their date. He sat in the living room watching a re-run of some comedy show, as his mother stood cooking in the kitchen.<p>

As the commercials came on, he heard his mother clear her throat.

"You know Finn; I would really like to meet Rachel sometime soon." She hinted. Finn smirked as he stood up and walked over to her. She carried on; "I mean with everything you tell us about her, we practically know the girl anyway. I'd like to put a name to a face." She smiled sweetly at her son.

"I know mom. I just want to make sure everything's good with us first. Then she can...you know...'meet the parents'". Carole chuckled.

"Ok honey." She patted his face affectionately with her free hand. He felt himself blush slightly.

"I should probably go pick her up now." He said, rushing to the door and grabbing his keys.

"Be good to her!" Carole shouted after him, as he left the house and clambered into his truck, not catching the genuine smile that lit up her face.

He sat for a moment and took a deep breath. He really wanted his mom and Burt to meet Rachel. He was sure they would love her. Kurt had already set a good word in about her, or at least he'd hoped he had, and that was before him and Rachel had even started dating. But now they were actually a couple, it would only be a matter of time. He placed the keys in the ignition and set off to Rachel's house, a flurry of pleasant thoughts rushing through his head.

* * *

><p>As he pulled up and stepped out of the truck, he felt his heart beat a little faster. <em>Chill it, Hudson!<em> He thought to himself. He cleared his throat and then walked up to the door, ringing the bell and standing patiently for an answer. After a minute, one of Rachel's dad's opened the door. He'd never met either of them before, and his heart leapt into his throat as he stood on the doorstep trying to look as presentable as possible, in front of the man smiling cheerfully before him.

He had some trouble with their names too, but fortunately, he could rely on calling them both 'Mr. Berry'.

"Hello Mr. Berry." He said as politely as he could manage. "I'm here to pick up Rachel for our date."

"You're early." The cheery man exclaimed. "Please, come in." He stood aside and gestured inwards allowing Finn to walk through into the hallway. He made sure to wipe his feet before he entered the living room.

"Thank you." Finn replied. He stood there for a minute, feeling rather awkward in their nice clean living room.

"Please have a seat - Finn isn't it?" the man asked, once again in such a cheery manner.

"Oh thank you. And yes. Finn Hudson, sir." He said as he sat on the clean white couch. Mr. Berry chuckled lightly.

"Oh please! Enough with the sir's and mister's. Call me Leroy." He exclaimed, laughing lightly. Finn gave a little laugh himself.

"Ok. Thank you...Leroy." It felt weird calling him by his first name, but he was glad he was getting along with him; it was important, seeing as he was intending to date his daughter and had already practically made-out with her already. _Oh crap, stop it Hudson! _He had to think to himself.

As he shook his head slightly, he heard the sound of someone descending the stairs; glad for the distraction he turned to see Rachel walking down slowly, her bronze legs appearing first before her slender body and that adorable face. Her appearance did nothing to stave his mind from inappropriate thoughts; she descended the stairs looking so much more beautiful than he had ever seen her. She wasn't even dressed up; she wore a simple short red frilled skirt and a pink blouse covered with a small black jacket. She looked so adult and grown up. It took all of his willpower to pull his attention away from her bare legs which were naked and silky smooth and ever so attractive. He cleared his throat as he jolted upright, standing to attention as far as he could, partially towering over Leroy. He was snapped back into reality by the incessant clapping of her dad.

"Oh don't you look precious" He emphasised the last word. "Doesn't she Finn?" He said, looking to the tall, awkward teen standing in their living room.

"Yeah" was all he could muster as he continued to stare at Rachel in a way he never had before. Rachel walked up to him and twirled a little on the spot.

"You like?" She asked, looking up at him with those beautiful brown eyes. Finn swallowed hard.

"Um-yeah. You look amazing." He spurted, smiling awkwardly. He could tell she blushed and that made his heart skip a little. Mr. Berry sighed beside him.

"Oh Rachel. You look lovely." Leroy said. Placing his hand on Rachel's shoulder.

"Thank you dad." She muttered. With that, Leroy started towards the kitchen.

"Shall we go?" Finn asked; once he had regained some composure.

"Yes, let's." Finn headed towards the door and opened it to allow Rachel to exit. "Bye dad!"

"Goodbye Mr. Berry, I mean, Leroy. It was nice to meet you."

"Indeed. You too. Now you kids have fun." Leroy shouted from the kitchen, as they both exited the building.

Finn walked side by side with Rachel down to his truck. He couldn't help but feel a little nervous around her at that moment; this was going to be their first "official" date and he didn't want to screw it up. Opening the passenger side door for her, he smiled and gestured to the seat.

"Thank you, Finn. I see you're still as chivalrous as always." He chuckled to himself as he shut the door and went round to the driver's side. He could remember that day when Rachel had first called him that. All those months back. He knew what it meant now, which pleased him greatly. He hopped into the driver's seat and buckled up. Looking over, he let a half-smile fall across his face which Rachel reciprocated by giggling to herself.

"What are you smiling at?" she teased.

"You just look so..." he trailed off, making her blush. Clearing his throat, he turned the ignition and began the drive to Breadstix, every now and then catching a glimpse of Rachel out the corner of his eyes.

For most of the drive, Rachel was silent as she stared out the window. This was unusual, as Finn was used to her constant voice in his ear. Not that it was a bad thing; he liked listening to her voice. It was often soft and melodic, and even if she was reciting her latest Tony acceptance speech, it was nice to hear.

"What's up?" he said, as ten minutes passed without a word from the little brunette in his passenger seat. She seemed to jump a little at Finn's words.

"Oh. Um. Nothing." She looked down at her hands and fiddled with them slightly.

"It can't be nothing. It's been ten whole minutes and you haven't said a word." Finn said playfully. "That's unusual, even for you." He chuckled to himself, but stopped once he realised that she wasn't laughing along with him. His voice went serious for a moment as he took a quick glance at her before turning his eyes back to the road; she was still silent, staring at her fidgeting hands.

"What's wrong Rachel?" he insisted, genuine concern flooding his mind. _Was she nervous? Did she not want to go on this date now? What have I done wrong? Am I not dressed well enough?_

"I just...I can't believe that this is happening." She said quietly, still looking down at her hands.

"What? What's happening? Is something wrong? Are you ill?" Finn blurted, an edge of panic in his voice. He heard her giggle lightly, which settled him a little bit. He was still concerned though. He wasn't sure what was up.

"I just can't believe that I'm here. In your truck. Going on a date with you." She turned to look at Finn as he slowed down in the traffic. Finn turned towards her and saw a glint in her eye that just overpowered him; the same way it did when she told him he could kiss her if he wanted to, all those months back in the auditorium. There was a pause before Finn was snapped back to reality by the honking of a car horn behind him. Rachel turned back around and faced the front, as did Finn as they carried on through the town. He tried to think of something to say in reply to her concerns but he couldn't. Instead, he kept quiet and left it at that, hoping she would cheer up through the rest of the date.

As they sat down at their table at Breadstix, Finn had to fight the impulse to scratch at the back of his neck; a nervous tick that he knew would give him away. He had no idea how this date was going to go; it'd been so long since he'd been on a proper date, let alone one with Rachel. He read through the menu and decided what he was going to order rather quickly; Rachel however, took her time.

"You'd think they would have more of a vegan selection for such a large restaurant" she criticised from behind her menu. Finn smiled to himself; she seemed to be her old self again.

"Well I suppose there aren't that many vegans in Lima." Finn suggested. She lowered her menu and glared at him for a moment, before returning to her most difficult decision.

"I suppose I could try one of the pastas. It seems to be vegan." She murmured, putting the menu back in the holder.

"Excellent!" declared Finn as he waved at a nearby waitress, who came over with a cheery smile on her face.

"Hello there! Welcome to Breadstix. What can I get you?" she said, pulling a pad and pen from her apron.

"Um, I'll have the steakhouse burger with fries and a coke." Finn said, almost ecstatic. He looked over to Rachel who eyed him sternly. "Make that a diet coke." He added.

"And for you young lady?" she said, turning her attention to Rachel.

"I'll have the vegetable pasta and a glass of lemonade please. Thank you." She had sat up straight and was delivering her order in a rather proper manner. The waitress nodded and walked away, leaving the two to their date.  
>Rachel glowered at Finn as he shuffled in his seat.<p>

"Sorry Rachel. I know you're a vegan and all, but I'm really hungry." He said, as he rubbed his stomach. She huffed a little.

"Well I suppose I'll just have to get used to it." She took off her jacket as they got comfortable on the two-seater table. Within a matter of minutes, the waitress brought over their drinks.

"Thank you." Rachel sipped at her lemonade daintily while Finn took large gulps of his coke

"Thanks"

Finn suddenly felt a little awkward. He had always known what to say to Rachel before, but suddenly he didn't realise quite how to do the whole dating thing, especially with her.

"Um. So?" he mumbled, looking at Rachel, who seemed to be distracted by a loose thread on her blouse. She turned to look up at him, eyeing him to continue.

"Shame about Regionals." He was glad he picked that topic of conversation, as Rachel began relaying a rant that might take until the dinner arrived.

"You have no idea, Finn. I mean, perhaps we weren't as good as Vocal Adrenaline, but we were so much better than that Aural Intensity! We totally killed that Journey medley! I tried so hard to come up with something bad about the performance, but I just couldn't! And that's saying something, because even I can find something critical about any performance. But it was just so good!" She paused and turned towards him, placing her hands in the middle of the table. "I thought you were amazing Finn." Her voice was soft and sweet. Finn felt a lump in his throat. He took a moment and leaned over the table, cupping Rachel's hands in his own.

"Thanks. But, you were so much better." Rachel smiled as she looked down at her feet. Finn had to take a deep breath as his heart started to race. He shuffled in his seat nervously and looked down for a moment. He laughed at himself a little before finally letting go of her hands, grabbing his napkin and placing it on his lap. He didn't usually do it, but he felt he had to try and impress Rachel with his manners. As he looked back up, Rachel had done the same and she was now sitting with her hands in her lap. Finn took this chance to build up some small talk.

Within a few minutes, the waitress brought them their food, while they were in the midst of a 'thrilling' conversation about Rachel's extensive collection of leg warmers. They began to eat rather quietly, while exchanging small snippets of conversation between mouthfuls.  
>After a while, Rachel had turned their small talk into a conversation about relationships and Finn had a feeling he knew where this was going.<p>

"So, why now? What changed?" She questioned, after swallowing a forkful of pasta. Finn chewed the bite of his burger quickly before answering; he didn't want to talk with his mouthful, especially in front of Rachel.

"I dunno really. It just kinda happened." He paused for thought. "I guess I suddenly realised that you were what I wanted. I felt more for you than I thought I did. I mean, I even felt like I-"

"Like you loved me?" she finished, looking at Finn deeply with those beautiful brown eyes.

"Yeah. Exactly." He smiled a little. "I know it sounds stupid, and probably not something you expected to hear, but I did - I do. I really feel something for you Rachel."

She giggled at his response, and blushed so much her cheeks were stained a rosy pink. She stared down at the pasta she was twirling on her fork. Finn stopped eating for a second and placed down his burger. As he watched her, a thought occurred in Finn's mind. He decided to go against all his inhibitions; "You know what really got to me? Got me to realise I really loved you?" Rachel looked up, her eyes begging for him to continue.

"It was seeing you with Jesse." Rachel cringed slightly at the thought of the male lead of Vocal Adrenaline that had broken her heart and, as Kurt never fails to mention, made breakfast on her head.

"Seeing you so happy and knowing I wasn't the one doing that to you. It just made me so jealous and so mad. I sang Jessie's girl to you." She smiled at that memory. "And I meant every word. And then seeing Jesse hurt you like that! It just made me so angry!" He tigtened his hands into fists as he spoke. "I thought it was just cos he was being a jackass but...I think the real reason it shook me, was because I cared for you so much and I hated seeing you so sad." He paused for a moment. "You remember that conversation we had when Jesse transferred? I told you that I really liked you? Where I shook hands with Jesse and promised I'd leave you alone?" Rachel nodded lightly. Finn's expression was stern, but emotional; his eyes seemed to say so much."Well you have no idea how much I wanted to beat that guy's face in, right there and then." And out of nowhere, she burst out laughing, falling into a fit of quiet laughter. Finn joined in and they both sat there laughing to themselves. Finn composed himself first. "I love your laugh." He smiled at her, letting his eyes stare deeply into hers. She managed to calm down at that point, staring back into his eyes.

"Finn?" she said quietly.

"Hm?" He grunted.

"I love you."

He had to struggle not to fall off his seat. He managed a smile, but inside, his heart and his mind were racing. He couldn't quite get used to Rachel's odd declarations of love. Even Quinn didn't say those words that often. To be honest, he could hardly recall her ever saying them at all, now that he thought about it. But she didn't matter; he was with Rachel now; the beautiful brunette sitting opposite him. She smiled at him, before giggling as she spoke; "You can kiss me if you want to" Cue a flashback to the auditorium. Finn laughed a little to himself as he gathered himself and swallowed hard.

"I want to" he murmured, before leaning over the table, and joining his lips with Rachel's. This time, there would be no need for a mailman. Her lips were sweet and soft as she reciprocated the kiss. Finn had to force himself to pull away from her, lest they get done for indecent behaviour in a public place. As he settled back in his seat, he saw Rachel bite her bottom lip; he found that so sexy about her. He gave her his trademark half-smile that he knew she liked.

"So. What are your plans for the summer?"

The rest of the date went rather well. Finn found himself enjoying himself more than he thought he would, and he had a feeling Rachel did too. As they left Breadstix, following a small, yet harmless dispute over the bill (Finn was adamant he would pay, but Rachel insisted she wanted to pay towards some of it, so he let her place the cash down, before picking it up himself while she went to the ladies room; he would give it back to her the next day) Finn felt Rachel's arm tug at his; he stuck his elbow out, giving her access to link arms with him. It was cold now, and the stars were clear and bright in the summer night's sky. He walked Rachel to his truck where he, again, opened the door for her and let her settle in before going round to the driver's seat and getting in himself.

"Beautiful night" Rachel said, as Finn drove her home.

"Yea. I love the stars. They're so pretty." Finn found himself saying. Rachel smiled to herself as they drove through a rather quiet Lima.

* * *

><p>Parking up in front of Rachel's house, Finn shut the engine off and took his seatbelt off. He was about to get out when he felt Rachel's hand on his arm.<p>

"Wait" She looked at him intensely. He turned his body towards her.

"What is it?" He questioned.

She took a moment, looking down before leaning over and planting a kiss on an unsuspecting Finn. She took the hand she had on his arm and cupped his face. Finn leant in and placed his hand against Rachel's hair, stroking it as he reciprocated the kiss. It was a strange sensation; he was feeling everything, everywhere, all at once. His heart was racing, and his mind was buzzing, but he didn't want to break the kiss. They made out like this for a while, Finn's mouth tingling from the sensation, his tongue desperate to reach into her mouth; but she got there first. Before he knew it, they're tongues were intertwined in the hottest kiss he'd ever had with Rachel. They were torn apart abruptly, though, once Finn's wandering hand hit the horn on his steering wheel. They both jumped from the surprise "honk", but kept their hands on each other, Finn's in her hair, Rachel's on his shoulder. They looked at each other for a moment before bursting out laughing.

"I guess I should get going" Rachel said after a minute.

"I suppose you should." He said, smiling. "But I don't want you to." Finn leant in to kiss her again, planting a number of small, soft kisses on her lips. She smiled beneath his lips before pushing him lightly, breaking them apart and allowing her to get out of the truck. Finn hopped out of his side and leant on the roof as he watched Rachel walk away and up the pathway. Before entering her door, she turned and looked at him.

He shouted after her; "I'll call you" She nodded and blew him a kiss. Going against every male-fibre in his body, Finn mimed grabbing it and touching it against his heart. He watched as Rachel giggled before opening the door and walking into her house. Once she had closed the door, and he knew she couldn't see him, Finn fist pumped into the air, his body filled with endorphins; ecstatic over his second, first date with Rachel. He climbed into his truck and made his way home. The date was a success. He was overwhelmed. He had a girl he loved and who loved him too. His face contorted into a smile so wide it might have stretched his face.

This summer was going to be awesome.


	2. The Lakeside

**Note: **_So I decided to, rather than make lots of short stories, make this into a mutli-chapter fic with a series of Finchel sorta-oneshots, based around them hanging out and going on dates together._  
><em>I'm actually trying my best to write a very "new" kind of Finchel, so that they're still getting used to each other; not like they are at the moment in the series. It's more difficult than I thought, but I hope it comes across.<em>  
><em>I also think that it's far too soppy at the moment. I'll try and add a bit of drama in the next one, I think.<br>Please review. I encourage constructive criticism._

* * *

><p>It had been over a week since Finn's (second) first date with Rachel. As far as he could tell, it went awesome. He knew Rachel enjoyed it from their super-hot makeout session in his car that night. It left him smiling all the way home.<p>

Ever since then, though, Rachel had kept in constant contact with Finn one way or another. She texted him practically all day, every day and called him nearly every night. She would text him so often that he had resorted to putting his cell phone on silent; the constant jingle was starting to get irritating. He'd often find himself sitting at home, playing the drums or the Xbox, when his phone would go off, and as much as he wanted to simply ignore it, as he did with most people who text him, he couldn't help but feel guilty; imagining Rachel's face as she sat in her bedroom, waiting anxiously for his reply. So he'd find himself stopping whatever he was doing and spending 5 minutes trying to come up with something worthwhile to reply; her texts were always essay-like and required more than the usual 'ok' or 'cool'.  
>He'd even had to stop in the middle of an epic game of Call of Duty with Puck when she text him a lengthy message asking his opinion on whether or not she could pull off the green skin look for her future stint as Elphaba in Wicked.<p>

"That girl's got you whipped" Puck sneered, tapping the controller against his leg as Finn hurried to reply.

"She just likes to talk, that's all" Finn said, not lifting his gaze from the screen. "There. That should give us about 3 minutes" He unpaused the game and continued playing, while Puck shook his head in disbelief.

As irritating as it was, Finn didn't mind Rachel's constant contact so much; he just wasn't quite used to this much attention. Even Quinn had kept her distance while they were dating.

* * *

><p>It was early one Sunday morning when Finn was woken by the light streaming in through the window. It was a glorious summer's day, but at this time in the morning, Finn couldn't help but grunt with disappointment; he didn't need to be up this early. <em>It's Sunday, <em>he thought. _I don't need to be up at all. _Lying in bed, pulling the covers around him and trying to block the light from his eyes, he contemplated what he'd do today. He had been thinking about getting a job, but the effort it required really didn't encourage him; besides, Kurt wasn't working either so why should he?

He found himself drifting off before long and only woke again once his body felt it was time for him to get up. '10:30', it read on the clock.

Finn heaved himself out of bed and struggled to pull on some clothes he had found lying about the room. Lumbering down the stairs and over to the fridge, he pulled out a carton of milk and began drinking from it. He turned his head as the sound of someone clearing their throat came from behind him; Kurt stood, a look of contempt on his face, as he stared at his step-brother.

"You know we all have to drink that?" he pointed to the carton. Finn shrugged, wiping away his milk-stache.

"I'm not ill or anything Kurt. Don't worry about it" He put the carton on the counter and started searching through the cupboards, looking for some form of cereal other than oatmeal or bran flakes. Kurt huffed in annoyance.

"And what are you planning to do all day today?" he asked, an air of annoyance in his voice.

"I dunno." Finn shrugged again. "Just chill out, I think." Kurt huffed again.

"Do you ever want to do anything, Finn? Like ever?" Kurt walked up to one of the cupboards, opened it, and preceded to shove a fresh box of Lucky Charms into Finn's hands.

"Oh. Thanks." Finn chimed with a smile. "Well I dunno." He said as he grabbed a bowl and poured the cereal in. "I mean I'd normally go out or something, but no one's doing anything. So I thought I'd stay here." Kurt stood, disapprovingly, with his hands on his hips, as Finn poured milk into his cereal before putting it back in the fridge and settling on a stool by the counter.

"You do know you have a girlfriend, right?" Kurt asked, with an air of disbelief as he watched his step-brother shovel cereal inelegantly into his mouth.

"Yes, I do know Kurt." Finn mumbled between mouthfuls, not looking up from his bowl.

"Well as much I dislike that obnoxious, dramatic-"

"Hey!" Finn interjected, giving Kurt a look of warning.

"Sorry." Kurt raised his hands in apology. "But as much as I don't like the..." he paused, looking at Finn to make sure he wouldn't interrupt again, before carrying on. "...enormous diva that is, Rachel Berry, I still think you should spend some time with her this summer."

"I went out with her last week!" Finn groaned.

"Yes, but that was one date." Kurt pointed out. He leant over the counter, looking Finn in the eye. "Seeing as she's your girlfriend, you might want to spend more time with her. Get to know her a little more. She's not Quinn you know" At that, he stood up and left the kitchen, humming in his wake.  
>Finn finished up his bowl and slurped the remaining milk in the bottom. As much as he hated to admit it; Kurt was right. He really needed to go spend some time with Rachel. He hauled himself back up the stairs and stepped into the bathroom. <em>Shower first. Then ring Rachel. <em>He thought to himself. _But what the hell am I supposed to say?_

He stepped out of the shower and waddled into his room. Picking out the first thing he found, he got dressed and settled onto his desk. He grabbed his cell phone and searched through his speed dial for Rachel's number. He gulped before dialling and placing the phone to his ear. Within two rings the sweet-toned voice of Rachel carried through the headset.

"Hello?" she chimed.

"Hey Rachel, uh. It's Finn." He said awkwardly.

"Yes I know. I do have your number." She giggled. He laughed nervously.

"Yeah, um. I was just wondering. Do you wanna...maybe...hang out today? Or something?" He gulped again. He wasn't quite sure how this was gonna turn out.

"Yes of course!" she squealed, rather more enthusiastically than Finn had expected. She quickly recovered herself though. "What do you wanna do?" There was a pause as Finn opened and closed his mouth gawkily.

"It doesn't matter" she broke the silence. "We'll figure it out once you come over." He nodded, despite the fact she couldn't see him.

"Ok. Sounds awesome. I'll - uh - be over in ten." He beamed as he spoke. "See you soon."

"See you soon Finn." He didn't know for certain, but he was sure she was beaming on the other end of the phone.

He sat there for a moment, a grin slowly growing on his face. Finn had tried to be nonchalant about his whole relationship with Rachel, and most of the time it worked. He kept his cool during any discussions with Puck or Kurt, but a small voice inside him felt incredibly gleeful and 'lovey-dovey' whenever he thought about her, or spoke to her, or saw her.

Snapping out of his trance, Finn got up off the bed, grabbed his jacket, keys and wallet and left his room. He rushed down the stairs and to the door to Kurt's basement bedroom before knocking rather loudly.

"Kurt?" he waited patiently as he heard footsteps coming towards the door.

"Yes?" Kurt questioned as he opened the door, now wearing a completely new set of clothes.

"I'm going to Rachel's now. I'll see you later." He smirked as Kurt nodded casually.

"Ok Finn. That's fine." He said, as if permitting Finn to see his girlfriend.

"Cool. See you later." Finn waved his hand and ran back to the hallway, where he slipped his shoes on and ran out of the door.  
>He leapt into the truck, started the engine and backed the truck out of the drive, all the while trying to figure out what he and Rachel were even going to do today.<p>

As he drove through Lima, he had a hard time imagining what kind of date he'd take Rachel on next. With Quinn, their dates had always been very basic; dinner or a movie and then a make-out session in his truck, which quickly ended with a prayer session. (At least with Rachel, he didn't have to pray every time they were together.) But of course, Rachel was different. She was a romantic, and incredibly picky. He had a feeling a movie and making out was out of the question.

* * *

><p>He pulled up at Rachel's house, shut off the ignition and stepped out of the truck. It was around 11:15am at this point, so Finn knew her dad's would be out at work. He walked briskly up the pathway to her front door and rang the bell. He waited for a minute before the door swung open to reveal Rachel, wearing her normal "librarian chic" clothing. Today's jumper had a cat on it, which made Finn smile.<p>

"Hey Rachel" he grinned.

"Good morning Finn!" she exclaimed, stepping aside to let the freakishly tall teenager into her house.  
>She led him over to the couch, where a plate of cookies lay on the coffee table, along with two glasses of hot chocolate.<p>

"I know you don't drink coffee" she beamed. "So I made us hot chocolate instead."

"Oh, thanks!" Finn said cheerfully as he made himself comfortable on the plush white couch. He took a sip of his hot chocolate and smiled in appreciation. "It's really good." She smiled a little, before lifting the plate of cookies and holding it in front of him.

"Try a cookie! I baked them myself" She said proudly. Finn took one of the chocolate chip cookies and carefully munched part of it. He sighed slightly at the taste; _it's sooo good_, he thought to himself. Taking the rest, and shovelling in his mouth, he grunted his appreciation. Rachel giggled lightly; taking the plate and placing it back down on the table. She tucked a stray piece of hair behind her ear as she looked down at her feet shyly.

"So what do you wanna do today?" Finn asked, once he'd swallowed the mouthful of cookie.

"Um. I dunno." Rachel mumbled. "I didn't have anything planned really."

Finn sat for a moment, pondering to himself as to where he could take Rachel. After a brief silence, an idea struck him quite abruptly and he had trouble disguising the look of enlightenment from his face.

"What?" Rachel asked, nibbling ever so delicately on one of the cookies.  
>Finn turned to Rachel and smiled broadly.<p>

"How about we go for a walk?" he asked, still beaming with delight.

"Ok." Rachel squealed, leaping off her stool. "I'll just go grab a coat and I'll be right down."

* * *

><p>Finn waited patiently at the foot of the stairs, tapping his foot lightly. Rachel had been up there for a while, and he was beginning to get concerned.<p>

"Are you okay up there Rachel?" Finn shouted, leaning into the stairway.

"Yes. I'll be right there" she shouted from the depths of her bedroom. Finn sighed and looked at his watch. It was pushing twelve o'clock. Soon enough though, Rachel came hurrying down the stairs, having completely changed her outfit from skirt, jumper and knee-high socks to a rather simple blue dress and bare legs, which Finn couldn't help but stare at.

"You got changed?" Finn questioned.

"Yes I did" she said, matter-of-factly. "If we're going out in public, I need to look good" She declared, brushing herself down. Rachel walked ahead of Finn as they both left the house; her practically skipping along the pavement.

"I'll just leave the truck here" Finn stated. "We'll come back for it" Rachel just smiled in response.

They walked for a little while, him having to control his pace as the tiny brunette next to him tried to keep up, before Finn plucked up the courage to reach out his hand and grasp Rachel's. She didn't object; she merely looked at their intertwined fingers and then smiled up at Finn. He felt his face light up as he smiled back; she looked so beautiful when she smiled. He loved that about her.

* * *

><p>As they wandered around the streets of Lima, Finn secretly directing them towards a location he had set in his mind, they couldn't help but fall into conversation; usually initiated by Rachel. They had just finished a discussion on sports, which Rachel was rather quiet about, when she spoke.<p>

"Do you ever think about Beth?" she said, seemingly from nowhere.

"Uh - Um. I dunno. Sometimes" Finn admitted, stumbling on the question. "I mean, I think about what could have happened if she had been mine" He questioned himself slightly; wandering whether this was a relevant confession in front of Rachel. His _girlfriend_. But she didn't seem to mind. She squeezed his hand as they walked.

"I think you'd make a fantastic father, Finn" She smiled up at him. Once again, with that bright, cheery smile that made Finn forget about everything. She turned her attention back to the path, as they started to enter a busier centre of town. She paused for a moment, as if preparing herself for something before speaking; her voice a little more serious than before;

"Do you ever think about Quinn?" Finn shot a glance at Rachel, who was staring down at her feet. For a moment he didn't speak, still staring at Rachel. She looked up to meet Finn's gaze and forced a smile. He pondered his answer for a second, wondering whether this would be going too far, but something about Rachel made him want to be honest. So he was.

"I do, yes" Finn said. Rachel's eyes fell back down to her feet. "But..." he began, regaining Rachel's attention. "...I only think of how she messed me up. And how I'm glad this whole thing is over now" He turned back to face the street, smiling to himself slightly.  
>"I like to think about you more though" as the words escaped his lips, his face went white. He daren't turn and look at Rachel now; he definitely needed to work on his word vomit.<p>

Their pace was slowing now, as he turned his head slowly to see Rachel staring up at him. They both stopped and turned towards one another. She was blushing slightly and her face was unreadable.

"I – uh. I didn't mean to say that. Like, it wasn't supposed to come out. I just, kinda, think..." he rubbed his neck nervously. "I like you, Rachel. Like, a lot. And sometimes, I think about us and -"

He was stopped abruptly by Rachel's lips on his. He felt himself melt into it, pulling her closer, as she proceeded to kiss him, with that intensity that was so undeniably Rachel. After what seemed like a lifetime, their lips parted and she smiled at him.

"What was that for?" he questioned, trying to regain some composure. She shrugged and placed her hand on his cheek.

"I didn't think you could get any more adorable Finn Hudson" at that, she grabbed his hand again and tugged it slightly, encouraging him to carry on walking.  
>Finn was left somewhat speechless. Even though they'd done it several times already, Rachel's kisses always threw him off a bit. And he couldn't help but notice how she almost always initiated them. She was very controlling. That was something he'd have to get used to.<p>

* * *

><p>They carried on with their walk, eventually steering away from the busy streets of downtown Lima, and instead, heading out to a more rural area. Rachel had chatted most of the way, with Finn interjecting with small snippets of reply. It may have seemed like he wasn't listening, but he always took in everything she said. He'd learnt that from his previous 'relationship' with Rachel.<p>

After about an hour into their walk, they passed a bakery. Finn offered to buy Rachel a snack, so she picked out a small cupcake, whereas Finn bought himself a large blueberry muffin. As they walked away from the bakery, Rachel finally came up with the question that Finn was waiting for her to ask.

"Where are we actually going Finn?" she said, delicately picking bits of her cupcake and eating them. Finn swallowed the chunk of muffin he had just engulfed with his mouth.

"That's the secret" he smirked, giving Rachel a cheeky look. She nudged him with her elbow.

"Is it a surprise? I love surprises! Please tell me Finn! Please, please, please!" She pleaded, holding onto Finn's arm with both of her hands. She reminded him of a small child; it was rather cute.

"You'll have to wait and see" He smirked, turning to see her face form into a pout. She crossed her arms.

"Fine. Keep your secrets" He watched as she contorted her face in thought, obviously trying to figure out where they could be going.

They carried on for a few more minutes before they came to a wooden gate that opened into a field. They both proceeded through it; Finn being his normal, chivalrous self and allowing Rachel to go ahead. She was silent the entire time, gazing around her with a mix of confusion and wonder. He led her down a gravel pathway, through some trees and out into a wide open space where, right in the middle, lay a beautiful still lake, which sparkled brilliantly under the gaze of the sun. Rachel gasped as her eyes took in the sight.

"Oh Finn!" she exclaimed. "It's beautiful"

"I know" He chuckled. "I thought you'd like it" He looked out at the park which he'd visited once or twice in his youth. He didn't know why, but he had a feeling Rachel would enjoy going to the park. He'd always wanted to take Quinn here when they were still together, but she never really took to the idea. However, Rachel seemed to love it.

"Come on!" Rachel cried, grabbing Finn's hand and running down the path, towards the water's edge. He had no trouble keeping up with the small brunette as she pelted it for the water.

He slowed down as they reached the edge of the lake, Rachel, though, slipped off her shoes and ran straight in, but only as far as up to her ankles. She giggled with delight as she paddled in the clear water. Finn laughed along with her. He couldn't quite get over how cute she was. As she stood there, kicking the water about, holding her dress a little higher up her legs, he couldn't help but think how great she was. In school and in Glee club, Rachel had always been bossy, egotistical and somewhat selfish. And he'd got somewhat used to that. But here, with just him and her, she was just as free-spirited and fun-loving as him. And that made him happy. So happy, in fact, it made it hard for him to think straight.

After a couple of minutes, she stopped splashing and turned her attention to Finn, who still stood on the bank, smiling awkwardly at her.

"What?" she giggled. Finn laughed.

"You're so cute" he sniggered. She smiled broadly at his compliment, before pulling a face that made Finn slightly nervous. He watched as she reached down, holding her dress in place with one hand, and cupped the other to the water.

"Oh, no, no, no!" Finn exclaimed, stepping back from the lakes edge, holding his hands in front of him. Then she did it; she pushed her hand through the lake; sending a spash of water in Finn's direction. It narrowly missed, but she tried it again, this time getting his trouser leg.  
>"Hey! No fair!" he cried as he chuckled, backing away from the water.<p>

Knowing that she wouldn't be able to get him now, Rachel ran out of the lake and up the bank, releasing her grip on her dress once out of the water and launching herself at Finn, who caught her and responded by tickling her sides with both hands. She bent over in fits of laughter and couldn't quite keep her balance causing her to topple into Finn. Soon enough, they were both on the grass, Finn on his back and Rachel lying awkwardly on top of him, both laughing at one another.

As the laughter subsided, she rearranged herself to lie more comfortably on top of him. Finn didn't mind; she was small so he could bare her weight quite easily; a perk of his minute little girlfriend. He smiled and looked deeply into her eyes as she supported her head on his chest. Tucking a stray hair behind her ear, he leant forward and placed a soft kiss on her lips. She sighed as their lips parted. She rolled over, still keeping close contact with him, but instead, looking up into the sky as small wisps of cloud passed overhead.

Finn turned his head to look at her, laying there, her hair dishevelled but still so beautiful. He smiled to himself. This was almost too good to be true. It was like something out of some sort of sappy romance film. She did the same; turning her head towards him and they both lay there, staring and smiling gawkily at each other for a moment, soaking in one another's company.  
>Time seemed to stand still as they watched each other. Finn felt this weird sensation that clouded his mind and made it hard to think about anything else. It was a strange sensation that he couldn't quite explain. He tore his eyes away from her and sat up, stretching his legs out on the grass. He stared out at the lake as Rachel got up and snuggled close to him.<p>

"We're good together, aren't we?" she murmured. Finn smiled.

"Yeah we are" He said, as she leant her head on his shoulder.

* * *

><p>They lay there for what seemed like hours, discussing every subject under the sun.<p>

"Do you think we can make it to Nationals next year?" Finn asked. It had been on his mind since they lost Regionals and he thought it'd be the perfect subject of conversation.

"Of course" Rachel said, as if it was the most obvious reply. "We only lost because Vocal Adrenaline had Jesse" She said it without looking up at Finn; he was glad, because he was sure the intense rage that crept up on him at that name, would have shown on his face. He had to control his thoughts as he imagined that _jackass_. He cleared his throat.  
>"Oh, I'm sorry Finn" Rachel said, lifting her head from his shoulder and looking up at his face. "I know that's a delicate subject for you" she smiled genuinely.<p>

"It's ok" Finn lied. "To be honest, if it wasn't for...Jesse..." he cursed the word. "...I would never have got the courage to admit my feelings to you" He looked into her deep brown eyes and smiled. "Really, I should be thanking him" He laughed at himself. _As if I'd ever thank that jackass._

"Hmm Ok" Rachel purred, settling her head back on his shoulder. "But we're definetely gonna win next year" She continued. "We were very good this year; so next year we're gonna be even better!" She began playing with the fabric of Finn's shirt as he thought over what she'd said.

* * *

><p>As the sun began to sink lower in the sky, Finn had to tear himself away from the lakeside when the concept of time crept up on him. He needed to get Rachel back before too long, otherwise her father's would go nuts. He stood and stretched his hand out to Rachel, who's eyes were still fixed on the lake in front.<p>

"Do we have to go?" She whined. "It's so nice here" Finn chuckled under his breath.

"We can come back you know?" She looked up at him and smiled, grabbing his outstretched hand and letting him pull her up onto her feet.

They walked hand in hand as they started the journey back to Rachel's house.

The walk back was mostly quiet; Finn thought perhaps it was because they'd run out of things to talk about, but the look on Rachel's face didn't show that; she seemed so smitten that she was content just holding Finn's arm and walking slowly through the streets of Lima. Finn wasn't quite sure how to feel at this point. A part of him enjoyed the silence; but another part of him questioned it, as this was Rachel, and silence was never something you associated with the teen diva. But there she was, gripping his arm like her life depended on it, and simply walking beside him. He looked down at her, trying to figure out where his mind was at that point. He felt so close to Rachel, and the day had been a monumental success, yet he was still somewhat new to all of this. He still got an awkward feeling whenever he thought back to Quinn and Puck and Beth. But at the moment though, he was so overcome with adoration for Rachel that he didn't much care about that right now. Instead, he beamed as she held him close to her.

* * *

><p>They reached Rachel's house around 5:30pm. It was a little later than he'd planned, but he thought her dad's might be sympathetic. If not, he could always lame the blame on Rachel.<p>

Finn led her up the stone pathway to her front door. She took out her keys and opened it, stepping into the doorway. She turned around to face the dorky looking boy standing on her doorstep. His face grew a half smile that Rachel responded to with a wide grin.

"Today was lovely, Finn" she said, playing with strands of her hair.

"Yeah. I really enjoyed it" Finn stood there for a moment, not entirely sure of what to do. She remained quite steadfast at the door, so Finn did the only thing he thought he should; leaning forwards, he planted a soft kiss on Rachel's lips. It was short, but sweet. Part of him knew he had to be gentlemanly with Rachel. So that would have to do. They stood staring at each other, rather awkwardly, when their attention was caught by the sound of one of Rachel's dads clearing his throat from inside the house. Finn grinned gawkily at Rachel, whose face was flushed red.

"Goodnight Rachel" Finn finally said. "And goodnight Mr. Berry" he called, lifting a hand in a friendly wave.

"Goodnight Finn" Rachel said, her voice a little shaken, as if out of breath.

"Yes. Goodnight Finn" Called Hiram as Finn descended down the path to his truck. Halfway down, he turned round, and saw Rachel, still standing at the doorway. He lifted his hand again to wave goodbye, as did she.

He got into his truck, started the ignition and began the journey back home. He didn't realise, until he was half way there, that he hadn't eaten a full meal all day. His stomach rumbled loudly with hunger. He laughed at himself as he thought; Rachel must have been something super special if she could distract him from food.


	3. The Fight

**Note: **_So it seems people are liking this, so I'm going to keep going. This time though, I decided to throw in a bit of drama to make it a bit more exciting (I hope). It might not be total "angst" as you call it, but it's slightly dramatic all the same; not quite as soppy. And because I wrote a fair amount, this will be divided into two parts. So there's a bit of a cliffhanger._

**P.S: **_I know Rachel seems to overreact, but let's not forget, that's kind of who she is. And you'll have to bare with me, I'm from the UK, so some of the spellings or words might not be the proper American way. It was hard enough writing "bangs" instead of "fringe". But do correct any errors if there are any. Thanks._

* * *

><p>He didn't quite know how to register it at first. Her voice. Her smile. Her impeccable dress sense. It took him a while to concentrate on what she was saying.<p>

The last time he saw her was on the last day of glee club rehearsal. He wasn't quite sure how things stood between them, but he'd hoped they had some closure after Regionals. She sure seemed happier. And that made him happy. She may have cheated on him with Puck, but she was still his first girlfriend.

Quinn stood, hands clutched together in front of her, as she smiled up at Finn.

"Good to see you" she murmured. "Thanks for coming" she pulled a genuine smile as she stepped aside to let him into the house.

"Yeah" Finn shuffled his feet a little and smiled awkwardly down at her. "No problem"

He was a little nervous; the main reason being that he was spending the day with his ex-girlfriend. At her house. Practically alone.

* * *

><p>It had all started the Monday after his date with Rachel; He'd been lying lazily on the sofa, enjoying a midday movie and hamburger, when his phone buzzed in his pocket. Expecting it to be Rachel, he pulled it out and nearly dropped it as he noticed the caller ID; Quinn's name showed brightly on the screen. He gulped a little before answering.<p>

"He-hello?" he muttered.

"Hey Finn" she said through the head set. "How are you?" her voice sounded surprisingly calm, which was unusual for the normally aggravated blonde.

It took him a moment to come up with a reply. "Hey, uh, I'm good thanks, you?" he spluttered. He wasn't quite sure why he was nervous. He thought perhaps it was because he and Quinn had history and a small part of him thought that she might still hold a grudge. Or worse, she wanted to get back together. And he couldn't do that.

"I'm great thanks!" she chimed, quite realistically. He calmed down a bit now. "I was just ringing to ask for your help" he furrowed his brow in confusion. He paused for a moment.

"What do you need my help for?" he questioned, a slight edge of concern on his voice.

"Oh nothing major!" she'd obviously sensed the hesitation in his voice. "My mom and I are clearing out some of the furniture in our house, and we could do with someone to do some heavy lifting" Finn breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed innocent enough; she just needed something super heavy lifting. He could totally do that. But a memory sparked in his head, causing him to question her again.

"Why haven't you asked Puck to do it?" he tried to disguise the slight disdain in his voice. As much as he cared for his best friend, and he'd forgiven Quinn, he still had issues when thinking of the two of them together. She sighed lightly down the phone.

"Don't you think I have?" He felt quite offended by the comment. He wasn't sure why. "He says he's got Judo practice. So I thought I'd ask the next best person for the job" Something akin to irony occurred to Finn. Or at least that's what he thought it was.

"Um, yeah sure. Why not? When do you need me?" regretting the words immediately, he waited for her reply.

"Would tomorrow be any good? Like midday? I don't know what you have planned, but my mom would like it out before the end of the week" Finn nodded to himself.

"Ok. I'll come over tomorrow. Midday" he said it with some authority, trying to avoid slipping into small talk. But Quinn seemed to have the same idea.

"Ok. Thanks Finn. See ya" she clicked the phone off before he even had a chance to say goodbye himself. Maybe she did still hold some grudge against him.

* * *

><p>After driving to the Fabray household the next day, that is where Finn found himself; staring awkwardly at his ex, who so conveniently wanted his help to shift some furniture. He wondered whether she'd want to avoid small talk as well. He wasn't that lucky.<p>

"So how have things been with you?" she asked as she led him through the halls of her large stately home. Finn lowered his head a little.

"Um. Good. Good. Thanks" He daren't expand on his answer, as there was honestly, not much going on with him.

"Good. Good" She murmured, leading Finn up the staircase. "Been up to much?" He cleared his throat and pondered for a bit.

"Not a lot really. Been out a couple of times, but nothing really exciting" she nodded in reply. He decided to shift the focus to her; "How about you? Been doing much?" She didn't answer right away, as they turned and stopped at a door into one of the many rooms in the Fabray house. She held the handle while she gave her answer.

"No. Not particularly" she shrugged her shoulders and opened the door into the room.

It was filled with old furniture of every shape, size and colour. Finn looked around and gulped. Quinn hadn't been kidding. There were a lot of large pieces of furniture here. He had a lot of lifting to do. She walked into the room and stood by an old grand piano.

"It was my dad's idea to keep all this" She said quietly, lifting the hood and tapping at the keys on the piano. "My mom insisted on changing the furniture constantly, but he didn't want to throw it all away" The way she spoke about her father made it sound like he'd long been deceased. But instead, he was probably in a motel somewhere, drinking his sorrows away. Or so Finn imagined. He'd never liked Mr. Fabray. Probably because he'd kicked Quinn out when she really needed him. But it wasn't up to Finn to judge; it wasn't his baby. Not anymore. He shook the thoughts from his head and walked up to the piano.

"So what's your mom doing with it all?" She looked up at him, her eyes glistening slightly with unshed tears.

"She's going to sell it. It's hard being a single mom" She smiled. "I'm glad I didn't have to go through that" Finn flinched slightly and took a small step back. The whole baby thing was still a touchy subject with him, but he was learning to get over it.

"Right!" he exclaimed, clapping his hands to try and end the awkward silence. "What do I need to do?" Quinn laughed a little, under her breath.

"Just take it all downstairs and out into the front garden. My mom's gone out, but the van should be here soon to pick all the stuff up" He froze for a second, thinking of the implications of Quinn's words. _Her mom wasn't here. They were alone._ He swallowed hard, before grabbing a couple of stacked chairs, heaving them up and descending back through the house to the front yard. Quinn followed behind, carrying a smaller and lighter set of stools.

* * *

><p>It took them all afternoon and into late evening to finally clear out all the furniture. It hadn't been as awkward as Finn was expecting, but he could sense there was still some air of distance between the two of them. He was just relieved that Quinn never attempted to make a move, despite the fact that both of them were alone for most of the day. He was also glad she didn't mention Rachel. He wasn't quite ready for that conversation yet.<br>Even Quinn's mother seemed shocked to see him; she had given Quinn a look as Finn walked through the house with a small chest of drawers. He didn't catch Quinn's response.

The yard was practically full when the van turned up to shift some of the stuff. Finn helped the driver stack the furniture in the back, while Quinn's mother signed the papers before he drove off. Mrs. Fabray left them out in the yard as she went to prepare dinner, leaving Finn and Quinn alone on her front yard, the sun slowly setting beyond the horizon. She stared out into the distance as Finn stood uncomfortably, with his hands deep in his jean pockets.

"So, uh. Is that it?" he murmured, trying to escape as soon as he could. She seemed to be snapped back to reality.

"Wha-yeah. Yeah. Thanks Finn" She reached out and touched his arm gently, smiling at him. He smiled weakly, back at her. "Would you like to stay for dinner?" she asked all of a sudden. It was difficult for Finn to read her face, but he considered the offer. He **was** hungry. But this was Quinn. He shook his head.

"Nah. Sorry Quinn. I best be getting back. Thanks for the offer though" he smiled genuinely at her as he made his way back to his truck. She walked alongside him.

"Say bye to your mom for me" he muttered, unlocking the door and opening it. Quinn stood there, rather steadfast, her hands wrapped around her as a cold wind blew about them. Her face was expressionless and unreadable, as always. "So...see ya" he bent down to get into the truck.

"Finn" he halted, and stood back up to his full height. _Is she going to do what I think she's going to do? _His mind raced. "I'm sorry" was all she said, before nodding gently and turning around. It struck him then. Was this the closure he was looking for?

"I'm sorry too" he called out to her. She turned to face him and cracked a small smile, before turning back again and wandering up to the house. He smiled to himself. _Maybe Quinn isn't all that bad, _He thought as he clambered into his truck and started up the ignition. He needed to get something to eat though; he was starving.

* * *

><p>Pulling up outside the Hudson-Hummel residence, he clambered out and ran through the front door. He was met with wide-eyed expressions from both his mom and Kurt, who were in the kitchen preparing food. Finn felt his ears burn. He assumed they had been talking about him from their abrupt silence.<p>

"And where have you been?" Carole asked, trying hard to stifle an overly cheery tone.

"Oh where do you think he's been?" Kurt responded, smiling broadly. He waved a wooden spoon around the air as he spoke. "Probably out somewhere having intimate relations with his one true love! Oh sweet Rachel Berry!" Carole sniggered, not looking at Finn, but staring down intently at the pot she was slowly stirring. Finn felt himself blush as Kurt laughed lightly at him. "Am I wrong?" He raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, actually" Finn grunted, not particularly happy with the way he was being made fun of. "I was at Quinn's" He said, as he kicked off his shoes and made his way to the staircase. He was stopped by the sound of clanging; Kurt had dropped the spoon, and Carole stood, leaning on the counter, as if for support. Their eyes glared at him with a mix of judgement and shock. He smirked, before carrying on back up the stairs and into his room. He sat at his desk and counted, anticipating what was going to happen next. Within 30 seconds, Kurt came running in, a fierce look in his eyes.

"You were at Quinn's?" He spat her name as if he couldn't quite believe it. "What the hell were you doing over there?" Before Finn could reply, Kurt pointed a manicured finger and stared at him. "You better not be cheating on Rachel?" Finn smiled weakly.

"Funny how you're getting on me, thinking I'm cheating on Rachel, when you don't even like her!" He stood up, towering over Kurt. But the smaller boy did not recede. Instead, he pulled himself up taller, still pointing at Finn, his finger inches from Finn's chest.

"I may not like her, but that does not mean I condone cheating! On anyone! Even Rachel!" He enunciated every word. "You aren't, are you?" he questioned again, glaring up at Finn, who sighed heavily, and slumped back into his chair.

"Of course not Kurt! I love Rachel!" It had been the first time he'd said it in front of his sort-of step brother and his response did not make him feel any better; Kurt sniggered under his breath. Finn rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. Kurt regained some composure and carried on with the 3rd degree.

"So what **were** you doing at Quinn's?" He shrunk down now, and settled himself on Finn's bed, giving him a look of sincere curiosity. Finn sighed again.

"She rang me this morning, saying she needed some furniture moving. So I went round and helped. It was completely photonic"

"You mean 'platonic'?" Kurt corrected.

"Yeah, platonic. We're cool now" he smiled and nodded his head, as if trying to partly convince himself. Kurt brushed a hand over his hair and shrugged.

"Well ok then. Sounds innocent enough" he stood up and left the room, but appeared in the doorway a moment later; "But make sure you tell Rachel that. Otherwise she'll kill you" He smirked before trotting lightly across the hall.

Finn flopped out of his chair and onto his bed. He had a feeling Rachel wouldn't take the news too well. But she'd understand. Right? _Right? _He sighed once again, flipping over and pulling a pillow over his face.

* * *

><p>She didn't take the news quite so well. Wednesday morning, Finn had gone to visit Rachel after agreeing to meet up. He was standing in her living room; her dad's had gone out grocery shopping and she had been preparing a lunch for her and Finn. That's when he blurted it out.<p>

"I went to Quinn's yesterday" He didn't know why, he just felt like he needed to be honest with her. He was hoping she'd make light of it.

He stood by the couch, looking over at Rachel in the kitchen. She froze in her position and looked at him with her deep brown eyes. He felt them pierce him as if she could see into his soul. It unnerved him. He looked down and back up again, hoping she would have diverted her gaze; she hadn't. She stood, deadly still, looking at him as if considering his words. He continued regardless, beginning his babbling.

"I only went to help her with some heavy lifting, that's all! She rang me up and asked, and I agreed cos Puck was busy and I felt like I had to do it! I felt like I owed it to her. She was my girlfriend after all" That's when she lost it. Finn had to dodge a spoon that came rocketing towards his head; she'd thrown it with some force. _With that arm, she could make an awesome pitcher for the school baseball team _he shrugged off his thoughts as Rachel began storming up to him. He'd never seen a truly angry Rachel, and the one in front of him was terrifying him. Not in the intimidating way, but in the way that he didn't like the fact he had caused her to act like this.

"Tell me the truth!" she practically boomed. She sure had a powerful voice for someone so small.

"I am telling the truth" Finn pleaded, trying to console her. She was having none of it.

"Don't lie to me Finn Hudson! I knew you would go back to that perfect blonde bi-" she stopped herself. Tears began to build in her eyes. "I know she's prettier than me and smarter than me but I thought you..." Finn took hold of her upper arms as affectionately as he could, trying in vain to calm her down.

"You're wrong Rachel. You're much prettier than Quinn and so much smarter. It was nothing. I swear!" The panic he was trying to hold back was building in his voice; this was not what he wanted. She pushed off his hands and stormed away, wiping the now obvious tears trailing down her face.

"You said you loved me Finn! And now you go off with your ex-girlfriend the second she calls you! What am I supposed to think?" He knew she had a point. But he had to make her see.

"I was being honourable" he hoped the use of the big word would have some affect. "I wasn't going to go on ignoring her all summer!" He insisted. It made things worse. Her face grew red and the tears flowed more freely now. She screamed at him between sobs.

"She was horrible to you Finn! She cheated on you, she used you and now you go running back to her? Like some lost puppy!" Just then, she pulled a look that made Finn's stomach turn; she looked like she had just come up with a question that could end the world. Or at least end his world. She said it so seriously and so quietly it was hard to make out at first.

"Did you kiss her?" He was so taken aback, he stumbled a little and his mouth fell open in shock.

"What?" He couldn't quite register her words. She walked back up to him, practically face to face, and looked up at him, her eyes red and puffy; fresh tears still leaking down from them. Seeing her like this caused his heart to ache. She repeated, slowly, emphasising every word.

"Did. You. Kiss. Her?"He just stared at her, unable to comprehend the fact that she would even question that. His panic began to boil over, and it showed.

"How could you even ask that Rachel?" he exclaimed, waving his hands exasperatedly.

She didn't take it how he thought she would. She backed away from him and headed towards the staircase. Not another word left her lips. He shouted after her. "Of course not! Rachel? RACHEL!" His panic and anger was so overflowing he thought he might start flailing and kicking things. She turned at the foot of the stairs, and without looking at him, spoke in a quiet, pained voice.

"I want you to leave" she didn't wait for him to respond; running up the stairs, an echo of sobs trailing her as she hid away. He didn't bother trying to chase after her; he wouldn't know what to say anyway. He simply grabbed his jacket and left.

* * *

><p>Getting into his truck, he sat in the driver's side and didn't move for ten minutes. Then the anger that had been festering inside of him burst out, and he slammed on the steering wheel with his fists. The horn sounded clearly through the midday air, but Finn didn't flinch. He simply pressed his head to it and growled at himself. <em>How could you be so stupid? You're an idiot, Finn Hudson! An absolute idiot!<br>_He spent the entire drive home trying to figure out what exactly had gone wrong, and the more he thought about it, the more he considered that actually, Rachel was overreacting. But then just the thought of making it Rachel's fault brought him back down again for being so mean to her, even if it was inside his own head.

He got home, stormed upstairs and collapsed on his bed in a fit of depression. He didn't care if Kurt or his mom came to see him. He wouldn't breathe a word to either of them. They'd just say _'I told you so'. _Especially Kurt.

* * *

><p><em>Continued in next chapter...<em>


	4. Les Miserables' Apology

**Note:** _Well I liked that little bit of drama. I don't think I'm through with the Finchel fights just yet, but for now, it's going to get soppy again! I also liked writing a bit of Furt bromance. That might crop up again._  
><strong>P.S.<strong> _I love getting reviews, so please, continue. It inspires me to carry on. I laughed at those that didn't want me to break Finchel up. You'll have to read on to find out._

* * *

><p>That evening, at dinner, he sat in silence as the rest of the family chatted freely about their day. They didn't notice Finn sitting slumped at the table, taking small forkfuls of chicken. He stared into space as Kurt babbled on about something he was sure he wouldn't find interesting. His mind raced with thoughts of Rachel and the fight and how much of an idiot he was. He was only brought back to reality when he felt a large hand pat him on the shoulder.<p>

"Finn, are you alright?" He looked up to see that the table was empty; Burt was standing beside him, his empty plate in hand.

"Yeah. I'm fine" He looked back down at his plate that was still half covered with cold, uneaten chicken; he must have been depressed. He sighed and stood up, dropping the plate of cold food on the counter.

"What's up with you today?" Burt questioned, looking up at him with genuine concern in his eyes. Finn sighed again, leaning back on the counter and rubbing his face with his hands.

"Me and Rachel had a fight" he confessed. It was slightly enlightening for him to hear it said out loud; he and Rachel had never really had a proper fight before. _Was it really a fight though?_ He thought. _I mean, she did most of the shouting._ He looked up to see Burt's expression turn to one of pity. He walked up to him and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry to hear that son. Was it about you going to Quinn's house yesterday?" He sighed again and nodded lightly. He wouldn't normally be this honest to Kurt or his mom, but somehow talking to Burt made it easier; he was a man, and he knew what it was like to be in his shoes.

"I just don't know what to do" he exclaimed, still staring down at his feet. "I want to say I'm sorry, but I didn't do anything wrong" Finn looked up to see Burt standing opposite him, his arms crossed. He shook his head lightly and smiled. "What's so funny?" Finn hissed, not seeing the humorous side to his dilemma.

"It's funny seeing you in the exact same position I was at your age" he looked up at Finn, still smiling. Finn pulled a puzzled look as Burt continued. "When I was your age, I had the same problem with girls. They never change." Finn listened intently; maybe Kurt's father would have some sage advice about girls that he couldn't exactly pass onto his birth son. "Girl's do that" He explained. "They get emotional, they cry, they shout, they scream, and fighting is just part of any relationship" He straightened himself up and placed his hand back on Finn's shoulder. "But what really tests a relationship, is whether you can get past those fights, and back to caring for each other" Finn pondered for a moment.

"But I don't know how!" he whined. Burt chuckled again and shook his head.

"You wanna know my advice?" Finn nodded to him. "Say you're sorry, **even **if you know you're not in the wrong. She'll forgive you eventually" he smirked and patted him on the shoulder, before walking out of the kitchen and into the living room. Finn had to stand for a moment and laughed at his sort-of step father's advice. He decided he needed to find some way to make Rachel forgive him, even if he didn't do anything particularly bad.  
>He stood for a while and pondered to himself, <em>What would be the perfect way to ask for Rachel's forgiveness? <em>He struggled for a moment; he couldn't exactly ask Rachel. _But..._ A light bulb switched on his head; there was only one person who was almost exactly the same as Rachel...and he happened to live under the same roof.

He hurried himself across the house and to Kurt's basement bedroom. He knocked on the door loudly and entered following Kurt's approving shout; "come in!"

"Kurt" Finn said, looking down to his brother, who was engrossed in an issue of teen vogue. "I need your help!"

* * *

><p>"Well I'm surprised you came to me!" Kurt exclaimed, following Finn's brief catch-up on his fight with Rachel. He'd made it sound a lot nicer than it had actually been. Kurt was sat on his bed, rifling through a number of playbills and theatre-based magazines, as well as a programme for the local Lima theatre while Finn sat on the desk chair that was wheeled round at the base of the bed. He'd filled Kurt in on his whirlwind plan to apologise to Rachel.<p>

"You know, I commend you for coming up with this idea all by yourself Finn; taking Rachel to a show at the theatre as an apology. Maybe you really **do** love her." Finn felt himself go red as Kurt flicked speedily through a copy of the Lima theatre programme, trying to find the perfect show to take Rachel too. After a few minutes they turned up nothing.

"No shows on at all? Now that's just ridiculous!" Finn deflated at the prospect of not being able to win over Rachel with a theatre show. He listened as Kurt babbled about the number of different shows that could be performed, while skimming through a modern issue of playbill.  
>"There are so many good shows that you could have seen; Phantom, Wizard, Wicked, Les Mis, Chicago, Cabaret..." Finn's eyes grew wide and he shot up in his seat as his memory sparked at Kurt's words.<p>

"What did you say?" He waved his hand at Kurt in an attempt to show the urgency.

"What? Chicago, Cabaret?" Finn shook his head as Kurt backtracked through the shows he'd been reciting.

"...Les Mis..." Finn stood up and pointed to Kurt as if he'd just grown an extra head.

"That's the one!" He exclaimed, practically leaping in the air, a smile brightening his face. "That's the show I've got to see with Rachel!" Kurt pulled a curious look and furrowed his brow.

"But there aren't any productions of Les Mis going on right now. And why that one anyway?" He raised an eyebrow suspiciously. Finn sat himself back down and couldn't help but bounce his knee in excitement.

"I remember Rachel talking about it; I knew she sang one of those songs for her audition for Glee, and she loves that show. I have to watch it with her!" He had such an enthusiasm it unnerved Kurt a little.

"Well this is quite unlike you Finn. I'm surprised you'd remember Little Miss Berry's favourite shows. And I do commend her taste in theatre, but how can you possibly watch it with her; there's nowhere locally, that's putting it on. And I don't see you flying around the country just to apologise to Rachel" He seemed to be really pessimistic about the whole prospect, but Finn had a wide, beaming smile regardless. He stood back up and went to walk out of the room.

"Thanks Kurt" He said before exiting out the door. "You've given me a great idea" He shut the door behind him, not expanding any further and leaving Kurt quite baffled.

Leaping up the stairs and into his room, Finn shot straight onto his computer and swiftly got onto the internet. The excitement buzzed in him as he started to surf the net. It was time to do a little internet shopping.

* * *

><p>It had taken some effort and a lot of pleading, but he had managed to encourage Burt and his mom to go out for dinner and had promptly shooed Kurt over to Mercedes' house on Friday night so he could have the house to himself. He also spent an inordinate amount of time begging Rachel to come over that night, to which she reluctantly agreed. He was so thankful. This had to go down without a hitch. He dressed up a little for the occasion, wearing one of his plaid shirts, but buttoned up and tucked into the smartest pair of jeans he owned. It got to late evening as he stood in the living room, hopping from one foot to the other; waiting. Soon enough, the doorbell rang and he bounded over to it, trying to keep his cool as he opened it to reveal the short brunette waiting patiently on the door step. He looked her up and down; as did she. She was dressed rather smartly, but hadn't gone to as much trouble as Finn. <em>She still looks nice. <em>Finn thought.

"You look nice" he said, gawkily. "You've had a haircut" he pointed to the bangs that now covered her forehead. "It looks really good" She nodded.

"You look nice too" she said, waving her hand weakly at his shirt and jean ensemble.

He stepped aside and let her in. She didn't move to take off her coat, but just stood in the hallway, rather awkwardly.

"Can I take your coat?" Finn tried to be chivalrous, and reached for her shoulders; she flinched, before huffing and pulling herself up to her full height.

"What's this about Finn? Why'd you ask me to come over?" He stepped back and shuffled his feet a little, trying to pool his thoughts into coherent sentences. He looked down at his feet and then back up at Rachel's face, which he couldn't deny, looked so lovely with that new haircut; _it's like a perfect little frame for her face. _He cleared his throat.

"I wanted to apologise" She seemed to perk up at his words. "I know it wasn't right for me to go to Quinn's, and I'm sorry. I won't do anything to upset you like that again. I swear" He sighed heavily watching with bated breath as Rachel stared at him. She lowered her head as if considering something. He was starting to lose hope. So he continued.

"I thought I'd make it up to you" He ran and disappeared into the kitchen, coming out a moment later, wearing a pair of oven mitts and holding a metal tray, on which was a large pizza. "It's a special vegan pizza" he said, gesturing to the food in his hand with his head. "I can't cook properly, so I had to buy it. I thought we could share it" He looked at her and smiled. She still held her gaze and still made no move to sit down or take off her coat.

He rushed back into the kitchen and returned without the tray or mitts. This time, he went into the living room, where Rachel followed him curiously. He stood in the centre of the room, holding a plain brown paper bag. He walked right up to her. "I thought we could eat it while we watch this" He pulled a DVD case from out of the bag, holding it out for her to read. As she read it he could see her sturdy resolve start to crack. Her mouth twitched as if trying to break into a smile. He was getting to her and he knew it. The 10th Anniversary DVD edition of Les Misérables was the turning point. He cracked a half-smile as she looked up at him, her eyes glistening. Before he could say anymore, she launched herself at him, wrapping her arms tightly around his waist. He chuckled lightly as he rubbed her back with his free hand.

"I'm so sorry Finn" she mumbled against his chest. "I know I shouldn't have been mad at you. But I just..." Finn hushed her to stop.

"Don't worry about it" he said, as he hugged her back. "It doesn't matter now" he could hear her sniffle slightly against his body. "What matters is that we're both sorry and we're both going to move on. Right?" he pulled her out of his chest to look her in the eyes. Her eyes were lightly glazed with unshed tears. She nodded as he smirked. "Good. Now let's eat junk food and watch Lez Miserable's" She giggled at him.

"It's pronounced, _Les Misérables_, Finn" He shrugged and led her to the sofa.

A feeling of relief washed over him. It had been weird having Rachel so mad at him. He'd never experienced it before. Sure, Quinn was always mad at him, but Rachel? He couldn't quite stand it. He cared too much for her. He couldn't do that too her. It was the same when she cried. He remembers the day when he told her he didn't want to be a couple with her anymore. His heart almost fell out of his chest when he saw her tears start to flow. And now, after seeing her cry **and **throw things; it terrified him.

They made themselves comfortable on the couch, Rachel sitting patiently, as Finn brought out the large vegan pizza and laying it on the coffee table. He took the DVD and placed it into the player, switching on the TV and settling himself down next to Rachel. As they got comfortable, she snuggled in closer to him; placing her head on his shoulder and resting her hand on his chest. Finn's stomach grumbled as the movie began to play, so, trying not to unsettle her too much, he reached for a slice of pizza and took a chomp out of it. _This is pretty good. _He thought to himself. Rachel did the same, but she ate hers a little bit more delicately, purring in appreciation.

"It's good" she murmured between mouthfuls. Finn just nodded as they relaxed into one another and both stared at the TV screen. Finn thought he might not like it; the writing on the back of the DVD case didn't appeal to him much. But as the movie played, and the story of Jean Valjean and the French rebels played through in glorious colour, Finn couldn't help but become so immersed in the show, he almost forgot Rachel was there.

* * *

><p>As the movie came to a close, and the main dude with the beard let out the final draw-dropping note, Finn had to resist the urge to clap, as if he had just watched it live at the theatre. The credits rolled as he turned to Rachel, who was still leaning her head against his chest. He sniffed lightly, trying to do it as subtly as he could. It didn't work. Rachel's head shot up and she looked at Finn, who diverted his gaze immediately.<p>

"Are you...Finn are you crying?" she questioned, touching a hand to his face. He turned to look at her and she gasped as she saw his bloodshot eyes and the faint tear lines down his face.

"No" he lied, still looking at her. She cooed.

"Awww. Finn!" She couldn't quite contain the 'lovey-dovey' tone in her voice. It made Finn blush with embarrassment. He just pulled a smile at her as he wiped his eyes with the back of his hand.

"You were crying too!" he insisted, pointing to her puffy eyes and slightly smudged mascara. She shrugged.

"I always cry at Les Mis. It's such a beautiful story" She reached for a tissue in her pocket and began to dab at her face, wiping away the tears. She was slightly taken aback as Finn sat up on the couch, causing her to shift her position to give him room.

"I know" he exclaimed, desperate to share his opinions with her. "I mean, with that woman who left her baby..."

"Fontane" Rachel cut in.

"And that song she sang, wow! She was almost as good as you!" She blushed crimson at his words. "...and the prisoner dude adopted her daughter, and then he, kinda, got really rich"

She nodded along as he babbled.

"But he was being chased by that officer guy, who was like, crazy"

"Javert"

"And the girl, Eponine was it? She loved the young guy, the one who didn't die, but he loved the adopted girl. Fontane's daughter"

"Marius and Cosette" A broad smile grew on her face as Finn recited, with enthusiasm, the plot of Les Misérables in his own words.

"And when the bearded dude wanted to kill himself, and he sang that song. Oh man!" He brushed a hand over his head. "It almost killed me. It was so good!" he practically squirmed in his seat. "I can see why you love-" he turned to her, about to continue, but was met, instead, with her soft sweet lips against his. He was slightly taken aback, and didn't have a chance to reciprocate before Rachel pulled back. She smiled broadly as Finn felt his head go fuzzy and his mouth run dry. She looked deeply into his eyes, revelling in the moment

"What was that for?" he gaped, after a while, not entirely sure why he said it.

"Because I've never seen you this emotional" she said, stroking his face with her petite hands. He grabbed one of them and kissed it tenderly. He then pulled her closer and gave her his own sweeping, head-lightening kiss. He smiled gawkily once he'd released her.

"Let's watch it again!" he cried, to which Rachel responded with a genuine laugh. She nodded and settled back into her comfortable position against his chest as Finn restarted the DVD, beaming with delight. His apology had worked, and this was turning out to be an awesome date. And he finally felt a little bit closer to Rachel.

Rachel had to return home following the second play through and Finn was still beaming once she'd left. He sat on the sofa, skipping through the DVD to his favourite parts for most of the evening; only stopping once Burt and his mom returned home. Lying in bed that night, Finn was left reeling in adoration. He didn't know how to explain it, but he just felt so damn lucky.  
>He slept soundly that night, and dreamt of the bearded dude and the young adopted girl; she looked remarkably like Quinn. He saw himself, dressed in old-fashioned rich people clothes. The bearded dude was carrying him. And there was another girl. A girl dressed in street clothes; it was Rachel. And she was singing. Singing about him...<p>

* * *

><p><strong>P.S.S.<strong> _Of course I wouldn't break them up! I love Finchel! It wouldn't exactly be canon either, in my opinion.  
><em>_I loved the idea of Finn and Rachel watching Les Mis together and Finn crying over it. I actually got the idea after watching it for the first time myself the other day and having cried nearly the entire way through. (I know! Judge me as you will)_

_The dream at the end was a little extra addition. I hadn't realised quite how similar the love triangle in Les Mis was to the Finn/Rachel/Quinn triangle, as it was in the beginning of season 1. (Except no one dies in Glee!) It's also funny because Lea Michele has played Eponine in Les Mis. So there's a bit of a connection there!  
>Hope you enjoyed!<em>


	5. The Green Eyed Monster

_**Note:** Sorry for the long time updating; I've had some technical issues that prevented me from doing anything on the computer. I'm not sure about this chapter, it kind of came out willy-nilly and there's not much of story. Just some jealous Finn really._  
><em><strong>P.S.<strong> It's a lot longer than usual and I apologise. I may have got slightly carried away. Don't forget to review! And even sggest possible dates in the future! I'm running short on ideas!_

* * *

><p>He leant against the kitchen counter, looking tiredly down at his feet. He tried hard to let the commotion distract him, to little avail. His mind wandered freely; mostly on girls. One girl to be exact. He had no idea why he kept thinking about her. It was actually rather irritating at times. He often felt this tug at his heart every time he thought about her. He was eventually pulled from his stupor by the loud, clear voice of Kurt. He looked up to see his unofficial step-brother talking animatedly in front of him. It took him a second to catch up to what he was saying<p>

"...and she's supposed to be leaving soon , so you can cheer up Finn! Family times almost over!" Finn shook his head as if to shake the thoughts from his mind. "Are you ok? Finn?"

"Sorry man" he rubbed his eyes. "I've just got a lot on my mind right now" Kurt sighed heavily.

"Let me guess. Rachel?" Kurt raised an eyebrow, his expression unsurprised. Finn nodded lightly.

"Yeah. You got it"

"Are you two having problems? Because seriously, if you two break up, any chance we have at next year's sectionals will be utterly obliterated. We need yours and Rachel's voices to perform our duet. And as much as I hate to admit it, your duets are amazing. I don't think the Glee club could handle another relationship rupture!" Finn shook his head, chuckling very lightly.

"No, no. We're fine" He sighed. "More than fine actually. That's the problem" Kurt pulled a thoroughly confused look.

"Wait. What?" His face contorted as he tried to figure out the context of Finn's words. "So. You're fine. But that's a problem?" Finn sighed again, rubbing his temples in exasperation.

"Well when you put it like that..." his voice raised slightly.

"So what's the problem? You and Rachel are together, being all lovey-dovey and whatnot. Surely that's enough?" Finn covered his face with his hands, rubbing them down his face as if in some vain attempt to clear his vision and make everything better. It didn't work.

"Look." He raised his hands towards Kurt, trying to put his point across before the effeminate boy in front of him began to chew his ear off. "I really love Rachel. Or at least I think I do" Kurt glared at Finn, making him nervous. "But this whole relationship; It's so different to what I've been used to" Kurt crossed his arms as Finn continued. "When I was with Quinn, sure, I thought I had feelings for her, but it was more like we were together just because it was the right thing to do. I don't know. When I was with Quinn, it was just, Finn and Quinn. But with Rachel, it's both Finn AND Rachel. Do you get what I mean?" He looked up at Kurt, a glint of desperation in his gaze. Kurt's face no longer held a glare, but a look of understanding. He nodded slowly.

"I think so." He looked down at his feet as he tried to contemplate Finn's words. "You mean to tell me, you feel more like a couple with Rachel, like you're not just two people who are together. And that's scaring you?" Finn nodded with some enthusiasm.

"Yeah. Exactly" He paused, taking a deep breath. "I guess I'm just scared of being so close to her. I..." He took a deep breath, trying to focus his thought into coherent words. "I just don't know what I'm supposed to do" Kurt nodded and pulled a genuine smile.

"Now I'm not an expert in relationships..." he started, his voice lined with a hint of sadness and jealousy. "...but I think you need to tell Rachel how you feel. Or you need to figure out whether you're ready to be close to someone that way. And do it fast. Otherwise I'm sure your potentially 'psychic' girlfriend will catch on" He grinned, before patting Finn on the shoulder. Finn felt himself brighten up a little; as if some great weight had been lifted from his shoulders. He smiled then, his mind a little free from worry. It felt good to talk to Kurt, even if there was some tension still between them.

"Thanks dude. I really appreciate it" he stood up from against the counter and patted Kurt on the shoulder. He sped quickly up to his bedroom and settled himself on the bed, pulling out his cell phone and sending Rachel a text message.

_Hey Rach, Want to hang out tomorrow? You can come over here, or I could come to see you. It's up to you really. Ok? Ok._

He fiddled with his phone as he waited anxiously for a reply. He knew what he had to do now. He either had to talk to Rachel, and tell her how nervous he was, or he had to grow a pair, and just go with it. He was just about to check his phone, to make sure it hadn't accidentally shut off or worse, hadn't even sent the message, when he heard a knock at his bedroom door. His mom stood in the doorway.

"Hey, Finn, honey. Your aunt and uncle are leaving. Do you wanna say goodbye?" His mom looked at him pleadingly. He sighed.

"Sure mom" he said, as he hauled himself out of bed.

After saying goodbye to his aunt and uncle, who live in Toledo, and only come to visit every few months, he ran back upstairs and launched himself to his desk. He checked his cell phone to see if Rachel had replied; nothing. He began to worry a little. Rachel never took more than ten minutes to text back. She was notorious like that, and she often berated Finn for taking forever to reply to her texts. Now she was being hypocritical. _Is that the word?  
><em>He logged onto his laptop and began distracting himself through general browsing. He got bored quickly, and switched the laptop off and traded it for the Xbox, where he started playing Halo: Reach. After about half an hour, his phone finally buzzed, and he almost leapt from his seat in his rush to check it. It was Rachel. He smiled broadly.

_Sure Finn! :) I have dance rehearsal at 1pm, but you're welcome to come along. I'll see you about 11am then? Xxx_

He sighed as he read the message. He'd completely forgotten about Rachel's dance rehearsals. He needed to talk to her, but how could he if she's in the middle of some complicated dance steps? He smiled though, as he reread the message and reached the end; Rachel always put kisses at the end of her texts. He didn't obviously, because that's not the kind of thing a dude does. But he liked Rachel's. He quickly sent her a reply, agreeing to go round to her house at 11am, before he settled back into his game of Halo. He quickly distracted himself from Rachel enough to get through most of the game. He only gave up when it was time for dinner.

* * *

><p>Finn drove for ten minutes to Rachel's house; her father's were out at work, so he confidently knocked on the door and smiled broadly as the minute brunette answered the door; her long hair tied back, a headband holding her bangs out of her face and a surprisingly attractive-looking set of skin-tight dancewear gracing her body. Finn had to pull his eyes away as Rachel drew him in for a hug.<p>

"Hey Finn. How are you?" She beamed, skipping through the house to the kitchen, where she was drinking one of her morning protein shakes. He followed her and settled onto one of the stools by the counter.

"I'm good thanks. You?" He suddenly felt very nervous, knowing full well what he was planning to do today.

"I'm very good. I'm actually really happy you're coming with me to dance. It's about time you came to see me perform" She smiled at him, and he felt himself grin awkwardly. She walked over and grabbed his hand. "I'll admit, It'll be nice to show off my boyfriend to the rest of the girls in my dance class" she reached up and placed a soft kiss on his cheek. He felt himself blush as he continued to grin awkwardly, looking down at this perfect little vision. She looked down, a little sullen. "They don't believe me when I tell them I have a boyfriend" Finn raised an eyebrow, his ego growing a little.

"You tell people about me?" he questioned, unintentionally ignoring her sadness and focusing more on his reputation with Rachel's dance peers. She looked up at him, another beaming smile gracing her face. She obviously hadn't been offended by his subtly selfish question.

"Of course!" She said, as if stating the most obvious thing. "I love to tell people about you!" she lowered her voice to a whisper. "I actually do it in the hopes of making the other girls get jealous" she chuckled lightly and Finn found himself laughing rather wholeheartedly at her, his ego practically growing by the second. She slapped him playfully on the arm. "I'm serious!"

She walked over to the kitchen counter and emptied the rest of her protein shake into the sink as Finn continued to laugh under his breath. "They'll really be jealous today, when I turn up with you to watch me perform. That'll teach them a lesson" She spoke without looking up at him, her hands still fiddling with her flask. Finn then found himself mentioning someone he already knew he shouldn't be.

"But wait, wasn't Jesse in your dance class" she winced a little at his words. He didn't expand any further. Thinking of Jesse dating Rachel was still a sore spot for the both of them. It made him noticeably mad. She sighed.

"Yeah. He was. But they were never really jealous of him. I think most of them had been out with him already" She turned to look at Finn, the sadness in her eyes made his heart pang. He smiled.

"Well you've got me now. So they'll definitely have reason to be jealous" He smiled and sat upright, trying to look smug as she trotted over, her pleasantly gleeful demeanour returning. He wasn't vain or anything; in fact Finn was pretty self-conscious about his body. But he felt he needed to make Rachel feel better. At least she thought he was attractive. That was kind of enough for him.

* * *

><p>They hung out for an hour or so before Finn finally plucked up the courage to say what he needed to say. They were seated on the sofa, her leaning against him; her head on his shoulder. They were watching some crappy daytime TV show when he cleared his throat.<p>

"Hey, Rachel. Can we...um. Talk?" She jolted upright then, a look of pure panic in her eyes.

"T-t-talk?" she stuttered. "About?" Finn shuffled is position so his body faced Rachel's.

"I wanna talk about us" If she looked panicked before, she looked practically terrified now. Finn suddenly became simultaneously nervous, and concerned at the same time. He wanted to talk to her seriously, but he also wanted to keep his mouth shut and console her so that look on her face would go away. It was killing him, but he pushed through it.

"I've been thinking Rachel" her expression didn't change. "I...um...I talked to Kurt." Her face contorted lightly, but she made no move to speak. He struggled to form the proper words, but he needed to get it over quickly. "And he said, I should be honest with you" She gulped and her eyes glistened lightly. He opened his mouth to speak, but she cut him to the chase.

"You're breaking up with me? I knew it. I knew it. I just..." she turned away from him and buried her face in her hands. Finn reached out an arm quicker than he realised.

"No. No. No! Rachel!" He pulled her face up to look at him. "I'm not breaking up with you" He smiled to try and ease the tension.

"Then what are you talking about?" she said, trying to hold back sobs. Finn sighed heavily and looked down at the floor.

"What I'm trying to say is...I'm scared" He looked at her through the corner of his eye and her face only contorted into a look of confusion.

"Scared? Of what? Finn?" It was her turn to console him. She placed a hand on his shoulder. He pulled himself up to look at her.

"I don't know what I'm doing Rachel" He whispered finally. "I don't know what I'm supposed to do as your boyfriend" She sighed and shook her head. He could have sworn he heard her laugh lightly.

"That's ok Finn" She said, looking back up at him, wiping her eyes.

"Is it?" he said exasperatedly. "I mean, how am I supposed to be a good boyfriend when I don't know what to do? I'm supposed to be a leader, but I can't even lead myself!" She chuckled more obviously then. He looked at her, his face a mess of panic and worry.

"No-one knows Finn. No-one knows how to be a good boyfriend or girlfriend. You just do it" She kissed him lightly on the lips. "And you're doing a wonderful job" She reached for his hand as the clock ticked close to 12:30pm. "Come one. Time to go"

He stood up, his head still slightly buzzing, trying to process Rachel's words. He was still baffled; still riding the waves of his emotions, as he tried to snap back to reality. _Now why couldn't Kurt have said all that! Save me the worry and the panic! _He cursed himself. _That's because you didn't know how to say it, moron! _He fought with himself inside his head, as Rachel packed her bag ready for dance. As they went to step out of the door, Finn grabbed hold of Rachel's arm.

"I'm sorry for scaring you Rachel" he smiled weakly, feeling a little better about himself now. "I was just a little confused" She smiled back.

"That's ok Finn. I understand" She sighed. "I'm not Quinn. Being with me is going to be different" she said, not looking at him. Finn hated it when she compared herself to his ex-girlfriend. They were so different and he loved her because of that. _Why can't she see that? _He thought as they headed down to his truck. He gave her a hand getting in, before running round to the drivers' side and strapping himself in. She smiled at him again, this time, her smile reaching up to her eyes and filled with so much love. Finn felt himself warm and a feeling stretch from his heart, right through his body. He liked that feeling.

"Now let's go make those girls jealous!" she giggled as she squeezed Finn's hand.

* * *

><p>Arriving at the dance hall, Finn felt a lot better about himself and about his relationship with Rachel. After having the car journey over to think over it, he'd decided he was worrying about nothing. He used to be consistently bothered by his inadequacy of being a good boyfriend to Rachel, especially down to their history together, but since their eye-opening, yet brief, conversation, Finn had finally decided, within his own head, that he knew what he needed to do. He might not be being a perfect boyfriend, but as long as he kept doing what he was doing, he and Rachel would be fine.<p>

As he pulled into the car park, he saw a number of people, a lot of them girls, all heading towards the front doors of the hall. They were all dressed like Rachel; skin-tight Lycra, dance shoes and tutus and leg warmers ranging in some rather ridiculous colours. He hopped out with Rachel, who almost instantly took his hand and squeezed it, leading him to the entrance of the hall.

"Um. Are you sure about this Rachel? I mean, me being so tall and all, I might stand out a bit and I don't want to um..." he paused for thought. "...draw attention from you and your awesome dancing!" In fact, he wasn't so much worried about distracting from Rachel's dancing, than he was about being the awkward tall guy standing in a room practically filled with girls, all around his and Rachel's age and all in skin-tight clothing, dancing around for a couple of hours. This was going to be torture.

"Awww thank you" she cooed, "But don't worry about that!" she sighed. "You'll be fine. No-one will pay any attention to you" He gulped, somewhat offended by her statement. But he hoped she was right.

The hall was a lot bigger than he thought it would be, and two of the walls were lined with mirrors, so he knew they would all be able to see him. Fortunately, there were some chairs along one side of the hall, so he was slightly relieved that he wouldn't have to stand, literally looming over everyone else. Rachel still held a vice grip on his hand as she walked him towards a group of girls that were waiting around a middle aged woman, who was dressed in a black unitard, her dark hair pulled up so tight in a bun, it looked like she was trying to give herself a face lift. Rachel literally beamed as all the girls turned round to look at them, following the gaze of the middle-aged woman, who appeared as if she'd just seen a yeti. Finn looked at each of the girls now staring obviously at him. They were all generally wearing the same thing, and all of their hair's were pulled into a bun, like their teachers. None of them looked particularly attractive. At least not to Finn. But he had Rachel, so it wasn't like he was particularly looking. Not intently anyway. As they eyed him up and down, Rachel pulling him closer and closer to their judgemental eyes, Finn simply wanted to shrink and disappear. He wanted to support Rachel, but he felt so vulnerable over the watchful eye of these 'witches'. He gulped as Rachel addressed the middle aged woman, still with her hand firmly in Finn's. He squeezed her hand as he struggled to smile weakly at the group of girls.

"Good morning Madame Poulin" she said, swinging their arms, back and forth, as if trying to draw attention to their interlaced fingers.

"_Bonjour_ _Rachel_" her voice was thick with a French accent, and she spoke Rachel's name like 'Rash-ell' which annoyed Finn slightly. He didn't know why. "And who iz this _garçon capricieusement grand?" _Finn was even more intimidated, not only by her complicated French words, but also by the way she looked directly at him, her piercing grey eyes seeming to stare into his soul. He gulped and tried to smile more, but he was sure it came out more as a grimace. Rachel, however, seemed practically floating on air. She beamed; looking up at Finn's slightly smiling face, oblivious to his inner fear.

"This is Finn" she said, patting his arm. "He's my boyfriend" she looked around at the rest of the girls in the group, a smug look in her eyes as she just smiled pleasantly. "He's going to watch me perform today, if that's alright Madame" Madame Poulin took a moment, before nodding.

"A_mende_ " She turned around and walked over to the stereo system in the corner of the room. The rest of the girls stayed huddled in front of Finn and Rachel, whispering to one another and taking the odd glance at the tall boy standing awkwardly in their dance hall. He looked down at Rachel, who seemed ridiculously happy. She grinned so broadly, he was worried her face might stay like that forever.

"If you just take a seat Finn. We'll be starting in a minute" He just nodded blankly, before she attacked his face with her lips, pulling his head down and giving him one hell of a kiss. He was slightly light-headed as she pulled back, not catching the sly glance she took at the group of girls now huddled even closer together and muttering even more rapidly. Rachel skipped off towards Madame Poulin, leaving Finn standing awkwardly, his lips slightly puffy and still under the watchful gaze of the group of dancers. He cleared his throat and moved over to the chairs as the French dance teacher boomed;

"_Endroits_! Places!"

Finn sat himself down on one of the chairs along one side of the room, setting Rachel's bag on the floor beneath his chair. There were only a couple of other chairs being occupied by some middle-aged women; obviously mothers. He noticed a couple of guys in unitards walking up to the group of girls, as they formed into a neat group of individual in front of Madam Poulin, who stared at them all with a look that could curdle milk. She started shouting something, but Finn blocked it out as he stared at the little brunette standing in the front row of the group. He could just about see her through the sea of green and pink fluorescent Lycra. Even in a group of her peers, she looked adorably short. He stifled a laugh as she hopped excitedly. She was so dedicated in everything she did. Even the obvious mean streak of her scary French dance teacher, couldn't stop her excitement over dancing. Finn thought maybe it had something to do with him being there. She turned around then, to look straight at him. _Maybe she is a little psychic_. He thought as he smiled at her. She smiled and waved back, before turning her attention back to Madame Poulin. He saw a couple of the other girls glance at her and then to him, but he ignored them.

He hadn't had a chance yet, but he could totally check Rachel out in her tight dancewear right now. She looked especially hot. Something inside him made him stare at her butt, which looked almost too perfect in those black pants. He had always liked Rachel's butt. He laughed at himself at a memory from last year; the time he stared at Rachel's butt during their ballad glee lesson. But he was dating Quinn then, and he couldn't stare. But now he was dating Rachel, so he could stare all he wanted. He stopped himself though; he had to be respectful. But he convinced himself it didn't hurt to admire his girlfriend's body. They started dancing then; a rather fast beat picked up from the stereo and Fin tapped his foot along as he struggled to keep an eye on Rachel within the midst of the flailing limbs, butts and Lycra.

As he watched the dancers move around fluidly, something inside him felt a little pain. He felt a hint of jealousy, especially when he watched the male dancers, and how well they could move so fluidly and so well, without looking like a giant trying to learn to walk. He had to look away for a moment, trying to shake the feelings from his head. He looked up again, to see the group had stopped, the music still playing, but a crowd had gathered in a circle round someone. A couple of the mothers had stood up, trying to peer over the crowd. From his seat, Finn couldn't see anything, so he panicked for a moment, thinking perhaps Rachel had fallen, but his worries dissipated as Rachel emerged from the crowd, walking towards him. The crowd remained in a circle while Rachel plodded towards him, her expression a little downhearted. He smiled at her as she took a seat beside him.

"What's going on?" Finn questioned as she grabbed and took a gulp of her water bottle that sat under his chair.

"Sophia fell over" She didn't look too nonplussed as she stared back at the crowd. Finn had no idea who this Sophia was, but he guessed she was someone Rachel didn't like.

"Is she going to be alright?" Finn asked, sounding slightly concerned. Rachel huffed.

"She's fine. She does this nearly every week" She crossed her arms. "She just doesn't like her spotlight being stolen" there was a twinge of bitterness in her voice. Finn shrugged.

"You were really good out there" he smiled at her, hoping to distract her. She turned and beamed at him. It had worked.

"Really? You really think so?" He nodded enthusiastically. She giggled. "Well, good for you to notice. I try very hard, and I practice a lot. And I know that routine like the back of my hand" she nodded to herself. Now that sounded like the Rachel Berry he knew and loved.

"Well it was amazing. I'm a little jealous really" She turned to him, her smile falling as she looked at him sympathetically.

"Oh really? I—I'm sorry Finn" He laughed.

"No, not of you. Well yes, of you, but, mostly of those guy dancers." He pointed to the several guys, who were now supporting Sophia's body as she hopped over to a chair. "I mean, I can't dance even half as good as those guys can" as he admitted it to her, he felt a little more strongly about his jealousy and hopelessness. He looked down at his feet, twiddling his thumbs. Rachel rested a hand on his knee.

"Awww. It's ok Finn. Those guys have been doing it for years. You can't expect to be at their level" Somehow that didn't make him feel any better. She sighed, realising what she'd said and regretting it. "What I mean is, they've had years of practice. You, you've mastered some dance moves in only a matter of weeks. Days even!" She leant over and wrapped an arm around him, leaning her head against his. He sighed.

"Thanks Rach" She gave him a small peck on the cheek as they sat patiently together, that familiar warm feeling bubbling up inside of him.

Soon enough their little comforting session was disturbed by the clearing of someone's throat. Finn thought it might have been the scary French teacher, but as both he and Rachel looked up, they saw differently.

A boy stood in front of them, looking no older than either of them and dressed in a similar unitard to the dance teacher, his short dirty blonde hair pulled out of his face by a headband. Finn felt a pang and the warm feeling was taken over by something else. Something that seemed to make him ridiculously protective of Rachel in that moment. The urge to stand up and stare down this boy, intimidating him with his height, was almost too large to ignore. Finn wasn't sure why he felt so protective and defensive; perhaps it was the way the guy kept staring at Rachel, and only taking quick glances at Finn, as if scared to make eye contact. Finn formed a grimace on his face while Rachel simply smiled sweetly.

"Hello Giles" she said, looking up at him from her seat. Giles smiled broadly.

"Hello Rachel" He kept his gaze on Rachel, as if transfixed by something. It made Finn nervous, and that overprotective feeling grew even stronger. The boy took another glance at Finn, to which Rachel perked up.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Giles, this is my boyfriend Finn. Finn, this is Giles" She introduced the two. Giles gazed warily at Finn, the smile falling from his face as he stuck out his hand. Finn reciprocated, shaking the boy's hand firmly, as if to show some kind of strength and dominance. Rachel had made it clear that Finn was her boyfriend, now he needed to show this 'kid' that he didn't stand a chance against him.

"Nice to meet you" the boy muttered as he pulled back his hand. He looked back at Rachel then, his mouth twitching as if to say something, but that wouldn't quite come out.

"Giles is my partner for our couples dances. He goes to that Dalton academy" she chimed, looking at Finn, rather oblivious to his inner emotional turmoil. The word 'couple' made Finn even more protective. And the fact he came from a posh prep-school like Dalton, made him jealous. He felt his hand grip Rachel's tightly and his legs shift as if to get comfortable. He just nodded, glancing at Rachel, who just squeezed his hand back affectionately.

"I was uh-" Giles spoke after a moment, seeming to stutter on his words. "I was wondering, Rachel, if you uh-" he kept glancing nervously at Finn, who kept his gaze on the guy, and held Rachel's hand tightly within his own. "I was wondering if you'd like to go over our routine later. I'm still getting used to the steps" He fiddled with his hands nervously, now looking down at the floor.

"Oh I'm sorry Giles" Rachel smiled sweetly at him. "I'm going to be busy this afternoon" Giles glanced back at Finn, before returning his gaze to Rachel. "Maybe next week?" Giles seemed to falter for a moment, his mouth opening and closing slightly, before he simply nodded and smiled weakly. He then turned and walked away, back towards the group of dancers.

Finn watched as he walked away, not looking back as he took his position within the group. His jealousy over the dancers' abilities was far overshadowed by the jealousy he now held for Rachel's dance 'partner'. Even though the poor kid hadn't done anything wrong at this point, there was still something about him that agitated Finn.

He was glad Rachel had turned down the option to practice dancing with Giles; he didn't think he would be able to cope if he had to watch Rachel dance with some other dude. Even if that dude was some short, blonde-haired young kid that seemed terrified of him. He was about to question Rachel when she stood up, relinquishing her hold on his hand. She smiled at him when he stretched his arm out, refusing to let go. She then skipped off towards the group, who were now all in their right formation in front of Madame Poulin. He kept his eye on Rachel, and glanced several times towards Giles, who seemed to appear more comfortable amongst the group of dancers.

Finn watched the dancers for another hour, his gaze remaining on Rachel, who moved so gracefully and so perfectly; he didn't think she messed up at all. Though he wouldn't know if she had; he didn't know exactly what dance they were doing. Some form of individual ballet/retro dance thing. It got to 3pm and Finn was beginning to get hungry. He had a habit of forgetting to eat when he was around Rachel. He guessed it was because she distracted him so much. As the clock ticked towards 3:05pm, Madam Poulin shouted loudly across the hall;

"_Assez_! We are _fin_!" she announced, going over to the stereo and shutting it off. "_Tr__è__s bon_. See you next week" She began packing up her own equipment as the rest of the dancers dispersed, going to their appropriate bags. Rachel hopped lightly over to Finn, a broad smile on her face.

"So, what did you think?" she asked sweetly, swaying on the spot, her hands behind her back. Finn stood up and smiled.

"I thought you were excellent. Trez bon!" She laughed at his pathetic use of French. He chuckled along with her.

"Why thank you, Finn. I really appreciate that" She reached down and took another sip of water from her bottle. Finn grabbed the bag and hoisted it over his shoulder. He took one more glance around the room, catching the eye of the blonde-haired Giles, who quickly diverted his gaze away from him and Rachel. _Was he staring at her? _He thought as they left the hall, Rachel practically running to the truck. They hopped in and began the drive back to Rachel's, with her explaining every dance move that she'd performed, commenting on the difficulty for normal dancers and how well she'd pulled them off. Finn just nodded along. He hadn't a clue what she was talking about, but he nodded all the same.

* * *

><p>As they pulled up outside Rachel's house, she leapt from the truck and headed towards the door, Finn close behind her, carrying her bag. Before he had a chance to speak, she started spouting off again.<p>

"I need to go have a shower now. You can stay down here and watch TV if you want" Finn nodded and smiled as Rachel stepped up onto her tiptoes, pecked him on the cheek and then rushed off up the stairs. All of a sudden Finn's mind started to buzz; _Rachel's going for a shower. In this house. That I'm also in._ _She's going to be naked. Above my head. _He looked up at the ceiling then shook his head violently.

"Jeez, Hudson! Calm yourself!" he whispered to himself. _Just watch some TV and wait for her to finish showering...naked...upstairs. _Finn wasn't disrespectful, or objectifying or chauvinistic, or any of those big words that Rachel often used. But he was a dude; he couldn't help thinking about this stuff; the fact that Rachel was upstairs, naked. He sighed before dropping the bag down and settling on the couch to watch some TV.

After about half an hour, Rachel came down the stairs, her hair damp, but wearing a clean set of typical 'Rachel Berry' clothes. As Finn turned to look at her, that warm feeling working its way through his body, he couldn't help but stare. She looked beautiful, even without any makeup on and her hair simply damp and hanging loosely around her shoulders. She smiled at him as he gawped, rather stupidly.

"Something the matter Finn?" she asked curiously, responding to his facial expression, looking up and down herself as if perhaps she'd put something on backwards.

"N-n-no" he stuttered, standing up from the couch. "No. Nothing Just-" he didn't finish his sentence and only smiled at her like an idiot. She grinned back at him.

"Do you want to watch a movie or something?" she questioned, running her hand through her hair in a vain attempt to straighten it out. He nodded awkwardly.

"Yeah. Um. Sure" She skipped over to television and shut it off, Finn's eyes following her around the room.

"We can watch it up in my room if you like" her tone didn't suggest anything, but Finn instantly gulped as his thoughts passed over the prospect of making out with Rachel. He felt that warm feeling grow stronger again. He nodded, trying to gasp out any coherent words.

"Ok"

He followed her as she proceeded up the stairs, and into her room. Finn had been in here a couple of times before, but as of yet, not as her boyfriend. She trotted over to her DVD collection and started scanning through the assorted movies. Finn stood in the doorway, unsure of where he should go, and simply stared around at the room. Her bed was still the same; covered in pink pillows and a couple of stuffed animals. The room was bright and cheery; a lot nicer in comparison to his closet-like bedroom with cowboy wallpaper. It didn't look too girly either, so he wasn't particularly unnerved by the room. It was more the fact that it was Rachel's room which made him nervous. She hopped up after a couple of minutes, her hands filled with DVD's.

"Right, do you want to watch something musical, something funny, something emotional or something scary. I personally would prefer to watch a musical. Or 'The Notebook'. That's a good film" she spread the DVD's out on the bed and looked at them, as if trying to make the decision herself. Finn smirked as he finally stepped into her room.

"The Notebook sounds good" he said, smiling at her. She looked back up at him and nodded.

"Yes it does. Good choice Finn" she said as she took the rest of the DVD's and started placing them back with the rest, leaving 'The Notebook' out on her bed. He knew all about this film; it was one of those sappy romance films that dudes generally didn't watch. But Finn was going to take that risk. Plus, it was just an excuse to get close to Rachel.

He stood awkwardly still, as she put on the DVD, playing with the settings and lining the TV nicely so they could watch it from her bed. She leapt on to the bed and made herself comfortable, throwing off a couple of stuffed animals and pillows as she did so. Finn kept his ground; not moving as she shuffled up against the headboard. She turned to Finn, who was still standing awkwardly, unsure of what to do. She giggled and patted the space to her right. He smiled and went to get up onto the bed but she stopped him, raising a finger at him.

"Uh-uh! Shoes off" she pointed to Finn's feet. He laughed and kicked off the shoes, before sitting himself beside her. He didn't know whether he was supposed to put his arm around her or hug her or whatever, so he simply sat next to her, smiling as he got comfortable. As she went to press play, he stopped her and decided now was the time to question her.

"Rachel, what was up with that Giles kid?" The question had been burning inside his mind ever since they left the dance hall, but he hadn't had a chance to ask it until now. She looked confused at first, before she perked up.

"Oh Giles? Nothing. Why'd you ask?" She seemed a little defensive, and Finn could tell she was hiding something.

"Well it was the way he was looking at you. Made me think" She smirked and patted his shoulder.

"Well I don't know, Finn. I actually think he has a crush on me" Finn sat up and turned towards her, his eyes wide in shock.

"I knew it!" he shouted, waving a finger at her. "Has he tried anything on you Rachel?" She just laughed, rubbing his arm affectionately.

"No Finn. He hasn't asked me out or kissed me or anything. So you needn't worry about it" She placed a hand on his cheek and pulled his face down to her level so she could plant a short, sweet kiss on his lips. "He's got nothing on you" she beamed, before playing the DVD and settling her head onto Finn's shoulder. He smiled to himself as he turned to look at the screen; his ego three times as big as it had been at the beginning of the day. He lifted his arm and wrapped it around Rachel's shoulder. They sat there, revelling in one another's company, watching one of the most emotional romance films Finn had ever seen, and that jealous feeling he had once had simply disappeared and was replaced by that comforting warmth he felt whenever he was around Rachel. He was content.

* * *

><p><strong>P.S.S:<strong> The dance teacher's name is derived from my secondary school French teacher whose name literally meant, "Chicken". I used Google translate for the French. Sorry if it sucks. It's not my favourite language.


	6. The 'Grease' Date

**Note:** _This idea came from_ **xImAGleekx** _so thank you for that! I hope it serves it justice! Plus, lots of soppy/sappy stuff this chapter. (And lots of Finn's feelings) I was in that kind of mood._  
><strong>P.S.<strong> _More Americanisms I had to get used to. I mean 'weenies'? Really?_

* * *

><p>The room was filled with the mixed aroma of sweet popcorn and Rachel's berry-scented perfume. It was warm and cosy, thanks to the brilliant afternoon sun, that peered through the window. Finn had settled himself down on the bed, his feet almost touching the end of it, sat in front of the television as it played out the opening number to 'Grease'. He took a peek at the warm body next to him; her arms wrapped around his middle, and hugging him so close he could smell the scent of her shampoo. That was his girlfriend. Rachel Berry. She nuzzled her head into the crook of his neck as they both sat and watched 'Grease' on that lazy Sunday afternoon.<p>

* * *

><p>Finn had initially planned to do nothing that Sunday, and to just laze around the house all day, as he did most Sundays. But a text and call from Rachel had his plans changed, and instead, he spent almost the entire day at her house, hanging out and talking about everything and anything. She'd even managed to slip in a conversation about next year's sectionals.<p>

"I think we should do another medley for sectionals" she said, as they sat at the dining room table, munching on some snacks that Rachel had prepared. "Not journey though" she stressed, looking up from the bowl of salad she was munching on. Finn smirked and nodded.

"I agree" he murmured through chews of the numerous cocktail weenies he had stuffed into his mouth. He hadn't really thought much about next year very much. As much as Rachel enjoyed discussing the future, he, himself, prefered to live in the moment. The whole prospect of next year kind of seemed daunting to him. Junior year. Sectionals. Regionals. Prom. It was all a bit scary.

He looked over at the short brunette who was happily munching at a stick of celery, and he couldn't help but admire her. Not just her bold determination and optimistic attitude, but also her in general. He admired the way her beautiful brunette hair cascaded elegantly around her head and framed her adorable olive-skinned face; the way her smouldering brown eyes looked so heavenly and full of love; the way her full, luscious lips drew him in, messing with his brain and wanting to kiss them so badly. If he hadn't have learnt so much self-control, he may well of leapt over the table and smothered her with kisses. Instead, he kept his gaze, taking in every little detail of the girl he called his girlfriend. The girl he thought he loved. _No. The girl he __**knew**__ he loved._

She looked up at him and he quickly made to divert his gaze. She obviously caught it, because she smiled tentatively as he peeked up at her, his face bent low. She chuckled lightly, before standing up and taking her empty bowl over to the kitchen sink. As she stood, washing up the dish, Finn approached her carefully and laid his empty plate into the sink. He tried not to stand too close, as they hadn't really got very touchy-feely in their relationship yet and he didn't want to freak her out, but part of him still wanted to grab her and kiss her face off. _Not literally, of course. _He thought to himself. She turned and smiled up at him, and he thought he felt another one of those pangs in his heart that she was so good at causing.

"Thank you Finn" she turned back to the sink and carried on washing up. Finn returned to his seat on the table and watched as she dried the dishes. She rubbed her hands on the towel and turned towards him, still beaming with delight. "So what would you like to do now?" she questioned, trotting over to him in that adorable yellow dress that practically made her glow. He shook his head for a moment, snapping back to reality.

"Oh, um. I don't know" he sat up and thought for a moment. "Shall we watch a movie?" It seemed harmless enough, and part of him, the very primal part of him, thought perhaps snuggling up to watch a movie might lead to a little making out. Even if only for a short while.

Rachel nodded enthusiastically and practically skipped over to him, grabbing his hand and pulling him off his feet.

"Come on Finn, let's go pick some movies" she dragged him out of the dining area and up the stairs. The situation reminded Finn of all those movies where the woman drags the man upstairs for more _intimate _things. At the developing thoughts of Rachel doing the same thing, he had to hunch over slightly; his pants getting slightly tight. It subsided soon enough, though, as he settled on the bed in her bedroom and watched as she hurriedly picked through the various DVD's.

* * *

><p>After a while, she still hadn't made up her mind, and she had a large pile of DVD's to the right of her as she sat on the carpeted floor of her bedroom. Finn decided it was time for him to interject.<p>

"Why don't we watch Grease?" he motioned towards the DVD on top of the pile. "I've never seen it all the way through" She looked up at him in shock.

"You've never seen Grease?" She sat, mouth agape.

"All the way through" he corrected. He smirked. "Never thought it was necessary" She huffed in that all too familiar 'Rachel Berry' manner.

"Well it is definitely necessary!" She picked up the DVD and began to fumble with her television. "I can accept that you haven't seen 'Phantom' or 'Cabaret' but 'Grease'?" She looked at him with a stern look, as if he was crazy. Finn just grinned like an idiot, causing her to break her sturdy reserve and giggle in an all-too-familiar tone. In the mdist of her giggles, she let out a snort that stopped her dead. They both froze for a second, staring blankly at one another, and there was a brief pause, before the room erupted in echoing laughter. Finn grasped at his side as Rachel, literally, rolled around on the floor, laughing. He looked on at her with adoration, his deep laugh mixing almost harmoniously with her high-pitched giggles that filled the room with sound. It was just like they were singing. Except they weren't. He then felt a strange sensation across his chest. The same feeling he had felt a few weeks back, when he had joined Rachel for her dance class. That comforting, warm feeling that Finn assumed was love. He couldn't rightly tell, but his knowledge of this kind of thing was limited. Quinn and Rachel had been the only girls he'd ever seriously dated. He was still trying to figure it all out. But he liked that feeling.

They sat for a moment, Rachel on the floor and Finn on the edge of her bed, laughing at one another hysterically. Once she'd regained some composure, and started catching her breath, Finn hopped down next to her and smiled as he looked through the impressive selection of DVD's. She was starting to put them away when Finn grabbed one from off the shelf.

"There's a Grease 2?" he questioned, turning to Rachel, who was still alphabetising her DVD's. She turned to him and nodded.

"Yeah. It's not that brilliant. Not nearly half as good as the original" she carried on putting the DVD's on the shelves.

"Can we watch it after?" Finn murmured, flipping the DVD over and scanning over the writing on the back. He never normally took notice of the back; usually he just bought a DVD because the cover looked good. Rachel turned to him and raised an eyebrow. He smirked. "If I'm going to be watching musicals, I might as well see all of them" he reasoned. She smiled and took the DVD from his hands.

"That is a very good point Finn. Ok. We'll watch Grease and then Grease 2" she placed the DVD case on the side, by the television and preceded to put the last of the DVD's away. Finn hopped up off his feet and shuffled over to the bed, where he sat tentatively down.

Rachel hopped up herself, and made to go sit next to Finn. He cleared his throat.

"Aren't we going to have any popcorn?" he asked, somewhat more cheekily than he had intended. She sighed.

"Finn! Is your stomach all you can think about?" she placed her hands on her hips and Finn had to hold back a laugh. She huffed as she made her way to the door. "I'll be right back" she then disappeared down the stairs as Finn made himself comfortable on her bed.

* * *

><p>A few minutes later, she returned with a large bowl of warm popcorn and the smell attacked Finn's nose in the most pleasant way. He sighed as she shoved the bowl into his lap.<p>

"There you go. Greedy pants" Finn smiled as he began tucking in. Rachel fiddled with the TV once more, before joining him on the bed. She sat upright for a while, but soon enough, she sunk down against him, pulling her arms around his middle and resting her head on his shoulder. Finn placed the bowl of popcorn down on the chest of drawers on his side of the bed, giving him space to lift his arm up and wrap it around Rachel, who only hugged him further.

In that moment, as the opening musical number of Grease started playing, Finn felt that warm feeling grow exponentially. So much so, he wasn't quite sure if he was going to start sweating. Which wouldn't be particularly attractive. He smirked at himself, before refocusing his attentions to the movie.

Throughout the movie, Finn couldn't help but laugh at some of the weird moments. Especially the trippy sequence with the girl with pink hair and that funky dude in white. _Beauty school dropout, was it?_ He liked the movie though. Ok, so the way they showed the football players wasn't particularly cool; but he could look past that. He liked the rest of it though; the story of the cool guy falling in love with, perhaps, the not so cool girl seemed like a sweet idea. It took him a while, to about half-way through the movie, before he realised how familair the story was. There was a definite similarity between Danny and Sandy, and him and Rachel.

He turned to look at her, as she still had her head resting against his chest. She must have felt his gaze, as she looked up at him and smiled sweetly. He stuttered for a bit, opening and closing his mouth like a goldfish as he was suddenly mesmerized by her deep chocolate-brown eyes. She withdrew her gaze away from his own eyes, which gave him time to regain himself. He watched as she turned her attention to his lips, as she subtly licked her own. He thought perhaps she wanted to kiss him and he kind of wanted her too. But instead, she looked back up at his eyes and smiled.

"What's wrong Finn?" her tone wasn't concerned; but more curious.

"It's us" He had no idea why he said it; it seemed like the end of a sentence he didn't know he was going to say. She went stiff in his arms a little bit, but she didn't start thrashing and arguing, as Finn thought she might after the little slip-up.

"What do you mean?" she murmured, her eyes glistening very lightly. She started to play with his t-shirt and he had to swallow hard and close his eyes for a fraction to regain his thoughts.

"I mean, this-" he nodded towards the TV. "-Danny and Sandy-" he turned back to Rachel, who was now looking at the TV. "-It's like us" She paused for a moment, still staring at the screen. Finn thought perhaps he'd said something wrong, but his doubts were dispelled as she hugged him tighter and nuzzled into his chest.

"I guess you're right" she murmured from against his shirt. He turned back to the TV, a little disheartened and definitely surprised that she hadn't expanded any further, but he knew by now; you don't push Rachel Berry. Instead, he thought about it himself. Not too bothered about missing some scenes, he began to think over the similarities between Danny and Sandy and him and Rachel.

_Ok, so there aren't many_, he decided. Danny and Sandy met over the summer; he and Rachel met in Glee club. Danny was the leader of the T-birds; ok, Finn was quarterback and therefore captain of the Titans, so that made some sense. But Danny wasn't a jock, and Finn was. And Sandy was from Australia; Rachel was at least still American. And Sandy was sort of a part of the Pink Ladies; Rachel didn't really have any friends before Glee. And Danny was a bit of jerk; putting his reputation first. But then again..._so did I. _The thought made Finn's heart pang again, and he suddenly felt like so much of a jerk for what he did to Rachel. Wrapping his arm tightly around her, he placed a small, soft kiss on her head.

"What was that for?" she mumbled against his chest.

"Just wanted to" was his response.

He hoped Danny would do the same thing Finn did; go against his reputation and go for the girl he wanted. He smiled to himself.

* * *

><p>As the movie played on, Finn couldn't help but hum along with the songs. Some of them weren't as good as he thought they might be, but they were ok. He was surprised at how much he could relate to the film. He even thought of Quinn when Rizzo said she was pregnant. The whole situation still hurt a little, but he was mostly over it.<p>

He was a bit concerned though, as Rachel was uncharacteristically quiet during the entire movie; usually she would explain things to him, but today she seemed to just lie against him and watch it. He liked this. It was calm and quiet, and the thought of having to leave to go home later made him slightly downhearted.

As he watched one of the final scenes of the movie, he suddenly sat upright as Sandy's figure came onto the screen; with big hair and wearing a black cat suit. His abrupt movement had dislodged Rachel from her grip around him.

"What is it Finn?" she asked, a little panic layering her voice.

Danny then started singing and his eyes grew even wider and his mind jolted; _"I got chills. They're multiplyin'". _He turned to look at Rachel with an expression that might have been seen on someone who had just invented time travel.

"This song..." he pointed to the television, keeping his gaze on Rachel. She looked to the TV and blushed a little. He knew she'd realised the same thing. "We sang this song..." he stuttered. She nodded lightly.

"First Glee club together" she smiled weakly. He nodded himself, settling back down against the headboard.

"I remember" he murmured, as if he didn't expect to. "I remember that day" He stared out into space, as Rachel shuffled around on the bed so that she sat, back facing Finn, with her knees up to head, her face tucked into them.

"So do I" her quiet voice snapped him back to reality. He looked at her back and gawped for a moment, not sure what to do. _Is she crying? _He thought to himself. He shuffled forward so that their bodies were aligned. Peaking round to look at her face, he noticed she wasn't crying, which gave him some relief.

"What was that?" he asked curiously, touching his hand gently on her shoulder. She cleared her throat.

"I said, so do I" She looked up at him, and he felt that familiar pang in his heart. "I remember that day quite well" She sniffed very lightly and Finn grew his trademark crooked smile.

"Our first duet" he said cheekily. She smiled then; a genuine smile that grew across her face. He nudged her in the side with his finger. "And remember the last time we sang it?" She looked at him for a moment before growing a look of realisation and then collapsing her head into his shoulder in embarrassment.

"Oh god" she moaned as Finn laughed wholeheartedly.

"You looked just like Sandy" he stated, pointing to the screen. She lifted her head back up, chuckling to herself.

"I made such a fool of myself that day" Finn shrugged.

"I thought it was pretty hot" She looked him in the eye then, her expression suddenly serious.

"You...you thought I was hot?" Finn suddenly felt hugely awkward as Rachel gazed at him. He tried to avoid looking into her eyes, as his heart began to pump frantically and nervously. He'd never told Rachel how hot he thought she was. Or the times he'd checked out her body. Even when he was with Quinn.

"Uh. Um. Yeah" he finally glanced at her. She had dropped her gaze, and her head was dropped low, but he could see the smile she had on her face and the rosy tint to her cheeks. He didn't know why, but he felt like he wanted to carry on. So he did. "I always thought you were hot Rachel" she shot her head back up to look at him, her eyes darting back and forth between his, as if looking for some sign that he was lying. He swallowed hard, as her expression became unreadable.

He didn't expect her to jolt forward and plant a hot and heavy kiss on him which left him stunned for a second. When she broke the contact, she bit her bottom lip and smiled. Finn felt that tingling sensation in his manhood again, and had to concentrate to smile back. His mind was all messed up; adrenaline, testosterone, endorphins and some other random bodily chemicals flooding his system. He cleared his throat, and was only brought back to reality by the sound of the TV, flooding to his ears.

"We're missing the movie" he noted, nodding towards the TV. Rachel jumped a little.

"Oh of course" They both slid back against the headboard, and Rachel returned to her position, wrapped around Finn's comically large body.

After a moment Rachel spoke up.

"I'm surprised you remember that day Finn" She didn't look up at him. He smirked.

"Me too" he said honestly. "Though the day with the cat suit would be hard not to remember" he chuckled as she laughed into his side.

"It was Kurt who told me to wear it" she confessed. As surprised, and oddly curious, as he was about the whole matter, Finn decided against pursuing the subject.

"Figures" he said simply, returning his attention back to 'Grease'.

The movie finished mere minutes afterwards, and soon enough, Rachel had hopped up and went over to put in 'Grease 2'. Finn sat forward.

"Uh Rach, do you mind holding on a minute, I need to use the facilities" he eyed her bedroom door and she blushed heavily.

"Oh, of course. I'll wait for you" He nodded and smiled as he walked out of the room and out to the bathroom downstairs.

* * *

><p>When he returned to Rachel's bedroom, she was lying on the bed, spread out a little, with the remote in her hand. As he stood in the doorway, something very dirty crossed his mind; triggered by Rachel's, probably unintentional, sexiness; the way her dress hiked up her legs, and how her hair spread about the pillow. It got worse as she looked over to him and smiled. <em>Was she being deliberately sexy? <em>He moved over to the bed slowly, trying not to let his mind wander too far. He parked up next to her and lay back against the headboard as she snuggled up to him again. He tried very hard to prevent the blood in his veins from travelling south.

"You ready?" she said, looking up at him with her big innocent eyes. He simply nodded, to which she responded by switching on the DVD. She got comfortable again, lying on his chest and, fortunately, not noticing how uncomfortable he was. He tried to watch the movie, distracting himself from Rachel's effect on him.

The movie played on for about half an hour before Finn suddenly felt his eyelids grow heavy. He struggled to pay attention to the movie as tiredness took over him. He didn't know whether he was just tired, or whether the movie was that boring that it made him sleepy, but he didn't have time to think as his face sunk and his eyes closed. He shot up again within a minute, but his body refused to give up; his head kept drooping and his eyes refused to stay open. Eventually, all coherent thought disappeared and he felt himself droop once and not get up again.

He didn't know how long he'd been asleep but as he stirred he felt a strange sensation all over. It felt like something was on top of him and something wet was caressing his lips. He thought he was being kissed. At that moment, his mind wasn't entirely switched on, but he instinctually reciprocated the kiss, to which the feeling immediately stopped. Finally opening his eyes, he couldn't quite believe what he was seeing. The weight he'd felt was Rachel, who was currently straddling him, and who had obviously been kissing him in his sleep. If he had been any more awake, he'd probably thought it was weird, but his mind was still switching on, so he just smiled awkwardly as she held her hand over her mouth, as if she'd done something wrong.

"Hey" he grumbled in his sleepy voice. She immediately leapt off of him and started pacing the room. He had regained enough cognitive function now, to sit up and look at her as her face and voice grew panicked.

"Oh god. Oh god. Oh god" She paced back and forth nervously.

"Hey Rachel. Are you ok?" she turned to look at him with an expression of guilt written all over it.

"I'm so sorry Finn" she gasped, waving her hands frantically. "I couldn't help it. You were asleep and you looked so adorable and I just...I couldn't control myself, and I know it's weird. God! You probably think I'm some kind of freak now!" She slumped onto the bed, her head in her hands. Finn quickly rushed to her side, sitting beside her.

"Hey, hey. No. Of course not" He took her hands and pulled them away from her face and forced her to look at him. "It's fine Rachel. Really" he smiled his crooked smile and she sighed heavily, pressing her head against his shoulder.

"I feel so stupid and so weird" Finn laughed as he wrapped an arm around her shoulder and rubbed it gently.

"You're not stupid Rachel. I am. For falling asleep during the movie" She looked back up at him and smiled.

"I don't blame you really" She motioned. "Grease is good, but Grease 2 is terrible" He smirked.

"What makes you say that? Just because I fell asleep, doesn't make it a bad movie. I fall asleep through loads of movies" He confessed. She shook her head and laughed.

"No really. It's terrible. It's because the songs are bad. Like, really bad"

"Like 'Run Joey Run' bad?" He grinned stupidly at her as she shot her head up and jabbed him in the side with her finger.

"You..." She smiled up at him, her eyes twirling with an emotion he couldn't quite decipher. Her smile fell then, and she just stared at him. "I love you, Finn Hudson" his smile dropped as he processed her words. Again, she said she loved him. And that made his mind go crazy. He smirked.

"And I love you, Rachel Berry" He let go of her shoulder and shuffled on the bed to get more comfortable. He then looked her in the eye and held her chin with his hand. "So, where were we?" He leant in close to her face, managing to catch her pull a seductive smile before he crashed his lips into hers. He was right; watching a movie did lead to making out.

* * *

><p>He didn't know how long they made out for, but honestly, he could have done it for hours. They were only broken apart by the tell-tale sounds of both Mr. Berry's singing soulfully downstairs as they entered the house.<br>Finn was on a massive high as he left Rachel's house and made his way home. He loved that girl so damn much; he didn't know how he could not.

* * *

><p><strong>P.S.S.<strong> _I've never seen Grease 2, so. I didn't put anything about that movie in here. Also, I know it's incredibly soppy, and probably far too intimate for a Season 1/2 Finchel, But what the hell! Blame it on the last few episodes!_  
><em>I don't know how much more of this I'm going to do. I might do one or two more chapters and then finish up this story. Probably move onto something else then. Well have to see.<em>


	7. The Mother

**Note: **_If my workings out are right, I still have 7 weeks left of Finchel's summer. So Yep, I think I should have plenty of space to write some more.  
><em>_Sorry if this one seems a bit odd or anything. I was in a bit of a writers-block when I wrote it. Hope its ok._

* * *

><p>It was that time. Meet the parents. Of course, Finn had already met the Mr. Berry's some time earlier. As strange and quirky as they were, he liked them. And they seemed to like him. But it had been 6 weeks since him and Rachel had started dating, and she had yet to meet his mom. He wasn't nervous, or trying to avoid the situation, in fact he felt that his mom would love Rachel. It was just finding the time for the two of them to meet.<p>

The topic first arose the night after his 'Grease' date with Rachel. She was talking to him on the phone as he sat at his desk, Halo on pause. He used to put her on speaker and just play the game while she spoke, but she'd berated him a little for not paying attention to her, so now he actually held the phone to his ear and listened intently as he stared at the frozen screen. She must have been lying down on her bed; that's where she almost always was. He could just imagine her lying on the bed wearing some sort of funky pyjamas with kittens on. He smirked at the image as she chatted merrily down the phone. All of a sudden she changed her tone.

"Why have I never met your mom?" she asked curiously. He frowned.

"Why would you want to meet my mom?" He didn't immediately get the need for Rachel to meet his mom. He knew his mom was awesome, but she's just his mom. Rachel sighed.

"I think I'd like to meet my boyfriend's mother. Besides, you've met my dad's!" Finn gasped lightly in realisation.

"Oh, right. Yeah of course" He scratched his chin as he thought. "Hold on" he said, after a moment.

"Wait, Finn!" Rachel shouted, but she was too late; he had already lifted the phone from his ear. He leapt across his room and ran downstairs.

"Mom!" he shouted from the top of the stairs. "Mom!" he descended the stairs quickly, looking around until his mother peered her head from the living room.

"What is it Finn?" she asked, slightly agitated. He sighed, the phone still pressed against his shoulder.

"Um. Are you working tomorrow?" She raised her eyebrow in suspicion.

"The late shift. Why?" she eyed him suspiciously. He gave her as innocent a look as he could muster.

"Well cos Rachel wants to meet you, so would it be alright if she came over tomorrow?" Carole's face brightened visibly.

"Oh of course" she smiled genuinely. "Tell her to pop over in the morning" Finn grinned gawkily.

"Thanks mom!" He turned around then, leaping up the stairs, bringing the phone back to his ear. "Rachel ?"

"I'm here" Her voice sounded strained, as if trying to hold back something.

"Are you ok Rachel?" She sighed lightly.

"You didn't have to tell her I wanted to meet her" He could hear the nervousness in her tone.

"Oh. Sorry Rachel" he hung his head as he sat, lying back against the headboard of his bed.

"I mean, what if she doesn't like me?" Finn laughed lightly.

"Nah Rach, she's going to love you" She squeaked a little in reaction, as if stifling a laugh, and he could tell she was smiling on the other end of the phone. After a brief pause she spoke up again.

"Do you always shout at your mother like that?" she murmured, trying to suppress a laugh.

"Uh, what? Oh. No, not all the time" he laughed lightly. "Just when I need her for something"

They chatted a bit more energetically throughout the rest of the night. Well, at least Rachel did. Finn simply interjected with the odd 'yeah', 'ok' and 'that's cool'. As it got to 11pm, Rachel said her goodbyes;

"Goodnight, Finn" she giggled.

"Goodnight Rachel" he was still lying on the bed, his hands absent-mindedly playing with the tassels on his gym shorts. There was a brief pause before Rachel murmured something unintelligibly.

"What was that Rachel?" he questioned, not catching her last sentence.

"Nothing. Sleep tight Finn" She added quickly.

"Um. Ok. You too" he muttered before he heard the click of her ending the call. He paused for a moment, trying to think what exactly she had said, before slipping off his bed and onto his desk chair where Halo was still paused. It was half two in the morning before he switched off the console and collapsed onto his bed and drifted off to a peaceful sleep, where his dreams were invaded by Rachel in pink pyjamas.

* * *

><p>The next day, Finn was rudely awoken by the distant sound of a vacuum cleaner. He tried to cover his ears with his pillow but the sound grew louder and louder until his mom burst through his door, vacuum at hand, running it across the length of his bedroom.<p>

"Mom!" he shouted, his face contorting in agitation.

"It's 10:30am honey, Rachel will be here soon. Now get up! I need to make this place look presentable!" Finn sighed so heavily he'd hoped his mother had heard. But she didn't say anything as she zipped round the room, picking up old clothes and tossing them outside. He slumped off the bed and out to the bathroom, where he clambered into the shower, his brain still trying to wake up.

After his shower, he could no longer hear the vacuum and instead, could hear the unmistakeable sounds of his mother rushing around downstairs, probably tidying up. Entering his room, he immediately noticed how meticulously clean it was, right down to his desk, which now looked uncharacteristically tidy. He was quick to get dressed, throwing on a pair of jeans and a striped polo shirt, before heading downstairs, his stomach growling with hunger. As he reached the kitchen, he watched as his mother ran around like a headless chicken, straightening the odd utensil, or running the duster over random objects, obviously panicking.

"You know, it's just Rachel mom? Not the queen" He laughed at his own humour while his mom made her way to the stairs.

"I know Finn. But I need everything to look perfect" He smirked as he watched her.

"So where's Kurt?" The absence of the effeminate teenager he shared the house with suddenly became obvious; he knew Burt was at work, but at this time, Kurt was usually sitting down on the sofa catching up on the DVR.

"Uh, he's gone out shopping I think" Carole said, slightly breathless as she eyed the kitchen one last time before zipping up the stairs; _probably to get changed_, Finn thought. He knew that his mom wanted to make an impression on Rachel, but he seriously didn't think his minute little girlfriend would mind if the house was a little untidy. Though he couldn't help but understand the need for some cleanliness; Rachel was very neat and tidy like that. He shrugged as he fetched himself some cereal and stalked up to his room, passing his mother on the way. She had managed to shower and change her entire outfit in record time. At least now she didn't look like she'd spent the last hour tidying the house.

"Don't spill that!" She warned, pointing a finger at him and eyeing the bowl in his hands. He just smirked as he entered his room and sat down at his desk.

Within a few minutes, his cell phone began to buzz on the desk. Picking it up and eyeing the caller ID, he laughed to himself as he answered 'Rachel'.

"Hey Rach!" he answered excitedly.

"Hi Finn" she sounded nervous. "Um. I just wanted to know, what should I wear today? You know? To meet your mother?" He tried to hold back a laugh, but he couldn't help the uncharacteristic snort that left his mouth. "I'm serious Finn!" She yelped.

"I don't think my mom cares what you wear, Rachel! Just wear something nice" He smiled to himself as he could just imagine her pacing the room, her face furrowed in thought. She hummed to herself.

"Hmm. Ok. I'll see what I've got" she paused for a moment. "Finn?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you really think your mom will like me?" her voice was a lot more serious, and Finn felt himself sigh at how adorably nervous she was. She seemed so concerned over the whole prospect, and it made Finn's heart pang in that oh-so-familiar way. He nodded, despite her not being able to see.

"Of course she will, Rachel. She'll love you" he punctuated the verb, making sure to stress it. "Would you believe she's as worked up to meet you?" He thought admitting his mother's recent behaviour would decrease her concerns a little.

"Really?" her voice seemed to rise in response.

"Yeah" he smirked. "Now get dressed and get over here so you guys can stop fretting. Seriously" he heard her chuckle on the other end of the phone. She cleared her throat.

"Of course. See you later Finn"

"See ya" She ended the call as he ran his hand through his hair. He laughed at the thought of both his mom and Rachel running around trying to impress the other. Finishing up his bowl of cereal, he waltzed downstairs to find his mom in a frenzy around the kitchen.

"What's up mom?" he asked as she searched frantically through the kitchen. She turned to look at him, her face a little red and her breath uneven from the running.

"I've just thought; I have nothing to feed Rachel! We have hardly any food in the house!" She kept searching through the cupboards, opening them and closing them, to then open them again, as if hoping something would magically turn up. Finn nodded.

"Oh yeah. Well she is a vegan, so I suppose we should get some food for her" At his words, his mother shot round and glared at Finn as if he had just admitted that Mr. Schue found pot in his locker.

"Rachel is a vegan?" she asked, her voice strained. Finn suddenly felt panic rise in him as he watched his mother's eyes. He nodded slowly. "Rachel is a vegan, and you tell me this NOW?" she almost shouted the last word. She threw her hands in the air in defeat.

"It's cool mom. I'll just take Rachel out for lunch. We have some lemonade don't we? And there are some snack-bite things in the cupboard in case she gets hungry?" He was quick to try and resolve the issue. He felt slightly relieved as his mother dropped her glare and sighed heavily.

"No, no, it's ok. I'll make some lemonade for when she gets here. And the snacks will have to do until I can prepare a salad" She sighed again as she started bustling around, preparing the snacks and drinks. Finn smirked as he wandered into the living room, settling on the couch and putting on the TV.

* * *

><p>Soon enough, the bell rang and Finn leapt from his position on the sofa, his mother still fretting in the kitchen.<p>

"I'll get it!" he shouted, heading for the door at speed. He quickly yanked it open to find Rachel stood on the step, looking up at him. She looked so adorable in a carousel horse sweater, short black pencil skirt, knee-high socks and loafers. He smiled at her as she smiled back nervously.

"Hey, come in!" he stepped to one side and gestured her to enter. He could tell she was still very nervous as she stepped carefully onto the threshold.

She was immediately met with the beaming face of Carole Hudson, who stood in the living room, arms outstretched in a friendly-yet-motherly manner.

"Rachel! It's so nice to finally meet you!" She pulled the small girl in for a crushing hug. Finn smiled proudly as his mother held the small brunette in her arms, who reciprocated quite willingly.

"Nice to meet you too Mrs. Hudson" She said almost confidently, a sweet smile gracing her face. Carole seemed elated at Rachel's manners.

"Oh please, sweetie, call me Carole" She brushed her hand over the girl's hair in an almost motherly way, to which Rachel responded by beaming brightly.

"Nice to meet you...Carole" She looked down at her feet nervously. Carole finally released her grip of the girl and disappeared into the kitchen, returning momentarily with three glasses of lemonade on a tray.

"Now, Finn has told me so much about you..." Rachel turned to Finn and raised an eyebrow, to which he blushed heavily. She then turned back to Mrs. Hudson who held the tray of lemonade in her hands. "...but I would really like to get to know you some more myself! I hope you like lemonade!" Her smile grew even wider, if that were even possible, as she brought the tray over to the coffee table, gesturing Rachel to sit down.

All three of them sat on the couch set, Finn in Burt's arm chair, and Rachel and his mom on the two-seater sofa. He watched the TV as the two women began nattering, his mother taking an eager interest in anything Rachel had to say. He made sure to pay attention, in case Carole started on anything particularly embarrassing, but he was fortunate that she hadn't so far.

"So what do you want to do Rachel? When you grow up, I mean?" Carole took a sip from her lemonade as she watched Rachel eagerly. Rachel cleared her throat as if preparing a speech she had often practiced.

"I'm going to be a star" she said bluntly. "I intend to study theatre at college, auditioning on the side and building up experience, hopefully getting a few lead roles in some musicals, before finally making it to Broadway and then winning my first Tony award by the time I'm 25" She nodded to show she'd finished and Carole just looked her, astonished.

"Wow Rachel. Those are some big dreams!" Rachel smiled appreciatively. "I hope some of that dedication and determination you have can rub off on Finn. I'm not even sure he's even considered the future yet" she laughed lightly, Rachel laughing along with her, as Finn slumped in his chair. "Did you know, when he was small, he wanted to be a police officer?" _Oh no. Here she goes. _Finn suddenly froze. Rachel raised her eyebrows.

"Oh really?" she looked from Carole to Finn, who had his eyes glued to the screen.

"Yea. When he was about 6, he came home from school one day and he had a plastic police badge attached to his shirt" Finn slumped even further, knowing exactly where this conversation was going. "He spent the entire afternoon roaming around the house, blowing a whistle and shouting orders to me and telling me I was under arrest" Rachel laughed wholeheartedly at the image of a young Finn strutting around the house. "And do you want to know the best thing?" _No. Please. No._

"Yes?" He turned to glare at Rachel, who didn't catch his look as she stared at Carole apprehensively.

"He tried to arrest one of the kids in school, but after handcuffing them to a lamppost, he got in serious trouble. So the teacher took the handcuffs and handcuffed him to her" Finn was now flushed deep red in embarrassment. _Way to go MOM! _He cursed her in his head. "So he was forced to walk around school all day attached to his elderly Primary school teacher!" Both Rachel and Carole burst out laughing and giggling, Rachel clutching at her sides.

"It wasn't funny" Finn muttered. They both heard him and started laughing even louder. He huffed, stood up from the chair and went into the kitchen area. He returned shortly after with some more lemonade; Rachel and Carole still giggling.

"It wasn't funny! She made me stay behind with her all lunch time...and the girls made fun of me" He wished he hadn't have confessed that, because soon enough Rachel and Carole's giggling erupted into booming laughter that echoed through the room. He was happy that Rachel and his mom were getting along, but he didn't enjoy it being at his expense.

He slumped back down on the chair as his mother and Rachel managed to regain some composure.

"Are we done making fun of Finn now?" he questioned, not looking at either of them. Rachel giggled.

"Aww, Finn. I thought it was rather adorable" She stood up and planted a kiss on Finn's creased forehead, making his stern expression falter and his face turn into a smirk. Carole sighed as she watched Rachel do so. Rachel then stood up straight and turned to face her.

"Carole? May I use your facilities?" she asked politely.

"Of course honey, upstairs on the left" She pointed to the stairs, to which Rachel nodded obligingly.

Once Rachel was out of earshot, Carole turned towards her son, placing a hand on his knee. At this, he finally looked at her, his expression one of apprehension.

"She's lovely" Carole gestured her head to the stairs which Rachel had just ascended. Finn smiled.

"So you like her?" He sat up, his eyes lighting up a little. Carole laughed and nodded.

"Yes, I like her. She's very nice and polite. And can I say, quite beautiful" At that, Carole stood and walked back into the kitchen. Finn sighed to himself, feeling that familiar warmth spread around his body.

Rachel soon returned and went over to join Carole in the kitchen, who was preparing the salad for the afternoon.

"Can I help you with anything Carole?" She turned to the girl who was leant against the counter bobbing on her feet eagerly.

"No thank you Rachel. But I appreciate the offer" Rachel smiled and sat down on one of the stools next to the counter. "I must apologise-" Carole began. "Finn neglected to tell me about your veganism and so we haven't got much for you to eat" she smiled warmly at Rachel, a tone of guilt in her voice.

"Not to worry Carole! I didn't expect Finn to remember at all, so the fact he did is a surprise" She turned in her seat to glance over at Finn, sitting comfortably in the armchair, watching the TV eagerly. Without realising it, a great smile grew on her face.

"You really like him, don't you?" Carole's voice pulled Rachel from her trance.

"Sorry, what?" she questioned politely, turning back to Carole who was washing the salad.

"Finn-" She nodded towards him. "-You really like him. I can tell" she smiled sweetly as Rachel blushed heavily, glancing down at her feet. She nodded lightly in response. Carole just smiled even brighter, before glancing down at her salad, her mind wandering back to the days where she had felt that warm feeling inside.

After a pause, Rachel spoke up.

"Carole? Can I be honest with you?" Rachel's voice was low and cautious.

"Of course you can honey" Carole responded, her smile just as wide and comforting. Rachel smiled bashfully and glanced back down at her twiddling thumbs on the counter.

"I actually...um. I love your son" She glanced back up to gage Carole's reaction; her face was plain and for a second, Rachel feared she would burst out in anger. Instead, Carole's face grew a motherly smile and she placed a hand over Rachel's.

"I can kind of tell" she laughed lightly as Rachel giggled under her breath. "But I'm glad. It's about time Finn had a nice girl like you" She didn't expand any further, in case she stepped into uncomfortable territory. Instead she leant right over to whisper to the little brunette that was so in love with her son.

"And If we're being honest, I think Finn loves you just as much" to that, Rachel's face grew an almost immeasurable beaming smile. Carole chuckled at her response. "Of course he would never tell me outright, but I know my son. And I can just tell by the way he talks about you, and looks at you..." she stopped, smiling to herself and chuckling a little. "...He just does" she nodded to Rachel, as if confirming something uncertain, before returning to her food preparation.

Rachel sat in her seat, her face aching from the smile that graced it, glancing from her boyfriend's mother, who seemed to have confirmed what Rachel cautiously thought she already knew; that Finn Hudson loved her. She looked over at the boy who had captured her heart and the smile couldn't drop from her face. As if he knew, he turned in his seat to look and dazzled her with his cocky half-smile. He lifted himself from his seat and manoeuvred over to the two women in the kitchen, smiling to both of them.

"What were you guys just chatting about?" he asked nonchalantly. Both the women glanced at each other before giggling a little. "What?" Finn looked between Rachel and his mom. "What?" They just continued to giggle. "Did mom tell you another embarrassing story about me?" He said, looking down at Rachel. "Cos I swear I've got a side to it as well!" Rachel laughed wholeheartedly.

"No, Finn. It was just a bit of girl talk" She took her hand and reached for his, gripping it tightly as she smiled up at him. He just stood there gawkily, staring between the two of them. After a moment he sighed.

"Ok. Just making sure" He smiled, before lightly pecking Rachel on the cheek. "Salad for lunch? Looks good mom. Can't wait" He nodded towards his mother, who looked up at him in surprise. He smiled to the both of them before excusing himself to the bathroom. Once he'd left, Carole turned to Rachel.

"He must love you" she whispered. Rachel furrowed her brow in confusion. Carole continued; "Finn hates salad" They both laughed wholeheartedly as Carole finished up the salad.

* * *

><p>Finn offered to drive Rachel home when she was ready, and at 3:30pm, following a surprisingly filling salad meal, Rachel reluctantly suggested that she should go home. She stood in the hallway, beaming with delight as Carole wrapped her motherly arms around her.<p>

"It was so lovely to meet you Rachel! And anytime you want to come round; you're always welcome" she released the small brunette and smiled at her. Rachel grinned back.

"Thank you so much Carole. For the lemonade and the salad. It was lovely. Thank you. I really appreciate it" She turned to walk out the door, followed closely by Finn. "Bye!" she waved excitedly as she headed towards Finn's truck.

"Bye Rachel! Finn, drive safe!" She pointed to the boy getting in his truck.

"I will mom, promise" He smiled before hopping in, followed shortly by Rachel.

He backed out from the drive, his mother still waving frantically at the door. Once she was out of sight, Finn spoke up.

"So? What do you think?" He smirked.

"About what?" Rachel asked.

"About my mom?" Rachel chuckled lightly.

"She's lovely. And she seems like a lovely mother" she sighed, a little downhearted. This didn't go unnoticed by Finn.

"There's plenty of her to go around" he said, a serious tone to his voice.

"Excuse me?" Rachel obviously missed the point. Finn just laughed.

"What I meant was, she could be like your mom too...you know...cos you don't have one...not a real one" He tried to put it delicately, but in true Finn style, it didn't go down too well. Rachel giggled.

"That sounds lovely Finn. I would love that" she reached out a hand and placed it on his arm; Finn glanced at her just in time to catch her smile. He loved Rachel's smile, and knowing he was the cause of it made everything so much better.

"Awesome"

He pulled up outside Rachel's house, noticing her dads' cars in the drive. He shut off the engine and turned to the small brunette in his passenger seat.

"Well, I'll text you tonight" he smirked, pulling his trademark half-smile. She blushed and smiled back.

"Of course" She was about to get out when he leant over and placed a quick kiss on her lips. He was about to draw back, but she pushed herself forward in an attempt to keep their lips locked. He willingly obliged. He loved kissing Rachel. Her lips were so plump and sweet; it was like they were made for kissing. She always kissed in this amazing way that made any coherent thought just disappear as soon as their lips touched. He still had a slight 'mailman' problem, but he was beginning to get control of it. She eventually deepened the kiss and allowed their tongues to dance around each other for a fraction before finally releasing his face when the need for oxygen became too dire. He just smiled at her like an idiot as she licked her lips. After a brief pause she looked into his eyes, her own brown ones dazzling him slightly.

"I love you Finn" Her smile was small but so full of love, while Finn's grin must of looked huge and made him look like an idiot, but he didn't care.

"I love you too Rachel" She blushed heavily before opening the door and scooting out of the car, shutting the door behind her. He watched as she bounced up the pavement towards her house. As she unlocked the door and stepped inside, she turned to look at Finn, who was still watching her with love-struck eyes. She blew him a kiss to which he responded by blowing one back.

_Jeez he was whipped. But he didn't care. He was in love._


	8. The Chore Day

**Note:** _Sorry if this seems very late; I had a writer's block, and I couldn't write much; 847 words to begin with. But then today, I sat at my computer and out popped another 5,000 words, so be happy! Plus, this is worth the wait! Or at least I like to think so!  
>This was originally a one-shot idea, but I managed to sneak it into my Finchel Summer story. Hope you like it!<em>  
><em>Again, had to figure some more Americanisms; much research deduced that a duvet is known as a 'comforter'. And of course, crisps which are known as chips. Crazy!<em>

* * *

><p>He slept peacefully on his too-small bed, his feet hanging loosely off the end. His dreams were filled with Rachel and Glee Club and a giant grilled cheese sandwich wearing a kilt. Then, all of a sudden, Finn was rudely awoken by a loud banging on his bedroom door.<p>

"Up and at 'em!" Burt boomed from behind the door. Finn blinked, his eyes adjusting to the light in his room. He scoffed, heaving himself out of bed and trudging to open the door.

"What?" was all he could muster as he looked at his mother's 'boyfriend' who stood in the hallway, dressed in his usual pre-work attire; blue overalls with the name 'Burt' etched into the fabric.

"Your mother wants you up to do some chores today. I had to agree. You've done nothing productive since summer started, so it's about time you did your bit" His tone held some concern as Finn tried to rub the tiredness out of his eyes. As much as he didn't like the idea of spending his day doing chores, he couldn't help but agree with Burt; he was being a bit lazy. Especially since he was living under his roof now, and he should really 'pay his way'.

"Um. Ok. Fine. Sure" Finn stuttered. "I'll get started right away" he turned back into his room as Burt nodded.

"Good man. The list is downstairs. Your mom will be back this afternoon to check your handiwork" he paused for moment. "I'll be at the shop all day if you need anything" He looked to Finn through the doorway, who was currently scouring his room for a clean pair of underpants. Finn stood up and looked to Burt.

"Yeah. Ok. Thanks" he pulled a small smile, before returning to his search. Burt let out a low sigh, and turned down the hallway; not before giving Finn a glance of concern. He was out the door ten minutes later.

Finally discovering a fresh pair of underpants in the mess of his bedroom, Finn got changed into as clean clothes as he could locate, before running downstairs, barefoot, and into the kitchen. As Burt had said, the chore list lay, repellent, on the counter. Picking it up and scanning through it he sighed; his mother had been particularly meticulous so the chores were probably going to take him all day.

_Finn,  
>Here's your list of chores for today:<em>

_- Clean your room (And I mean really CLEAN)  
><em>_- Dust the house  
><em>_- Vacuum the house  
><em>_- Wash the kitchen floor  
><em>_- Do some washing (any of yours or Burt's; leave Kurt's clothes)  
><em>_- Clean your truck  
><em>_- Check if we need any more groceries and put them on the list on the fridge_

_All the cleaning stuff is in the closet under the stairs.  
>Thanks honey,<em>

_Mom x_

He sighed once again as he fetched himself a bowl of cereal. He really didn't enjoy doing housework. Mainly because it meant being on his own in the silence and just listening to his own inane mind trudge on like a an old engine. He was used to cleaning, but this was the first time he had to do chores in Burt's house; which was much bigger than his old house. Grumbling with anxiety, he slurped the last bit of milk in his bowl and put it to one side. He'd have to clean that up later too.

Heaving himself upstairs, he went into the bathroom and took a leak. _I'll start in a minute_, he thought. _No sense in putting off the inirritable...or evitable...inevitable? _He struggled with the word. _Rachel would know the right word. _Then it struck him. He smiled at himself in the mirror above the toilet; an imaginary light bulb appearing above his head. Finishing up, he ran to his room, dug out his cell phone and looked to the screen; she hadn't text him yet. He looked at the time; it was still super early. He knew she'd be up; Rachel was always up early, but she'd stopped texting him before 7am after he'd berated her a little. Which he still felt guilty for. He was about to call her when he stopped himself. He wondered whether this was a good idea. Rachel was a bit of a feminist, so would she take offense if he asked her to join him in doing some of his chores? Or maybe she'd see it as a chance for them to spend time together? He didn't plan on making her do all the chores, but having her around might make it a little more interesting. He decided to go for it. Putting the cell phone to his ear he waited. She answered after several rings; unusual for her. When she answered, she was a little out of breath.

"Finn?" she asked, as if in shock.

"Yeah. Hey Rachel" He chimed.

"This is early for you" she said in surprise. "I thought you said I wasn't supposed to text or ring you before 7am?" her voice held a little anger. He knew why.

"I know. But Burt got me up; I've been forced into doing a load of chores today" he sat himself down on the bed. She giggled down the phone.

"I see" she said, the slight bitterness dissolved. "Well what are you ringing me for?" she questioned.

"Well uh..." he stammered a little. "I was wondering if you'd...um...like to come over and...uh...help" he paused. When she didn't reply he began to panic and ramble. "I mean, you don't have to! I know that doesn't sound like fun! And you're probably gonna be busy today, but I was just thinking...uh...it might be more interesting...for me...if there's someone here to...you know. Talk to" He swallowed hard. He was worried she'd been offended. He was caught off guard as he heard her unmistakeable giggle through the phone.

"Well if you put it like that. I'd love to Finn" He breathed a sigh of relief. "Would you like me to come over now or later?" He practically shouted his response.

"As soon as you can! Um..." he recovered himself. "...Would be cool"

"Okay!" she squealed. "I'll be over ASAP!"

"Awesome! See you soon!" He smiled broadly, not quite knowing what 'ASAP' meant.

"See you in a bit Finn" She ended the call first as Finn leapt off his bed and rushed to tidy his room. It would take her a little while to get here, but he wanted to make sure the place was tidy for when she arrived. He felt a little relieved now that he had some help with his chores. And it was Rachel. And she was excellent at cleaning.

* * *

><p>He rushed around his room, throwing his clothes out into the hall and straightening up anything that looked lopsided or wonky. He went to make his bed when he remembered he's supposed to strip and wash it. He sighed heavily as he started unbuttoning the comforter cover, before pulling it off and throwing out into the hallway, along with his dirty clothes. He just finished up with the pillows and bottom sheet when he heard the doorbell ring. He darted out quickly, scooping up the pile of laundry in the hallway and ran for the stairs; little did he know, the comforter cover was slowly slipping down and found its way to his feet, where it wrapped tightly around his left foot, causing him to lose his footing and fall ungraciously, down the stairs, banging his head on the wall as he did so.<p>

"Finn?" He heard the muffled sounds of Rachel from behind the door. "Are you ok? What was that loud noise?" He rubbed his head where it had impacted the wall. _Geez that hurt! _He thought as he stood, moving a lot slower this time; taking the laundry and dumping it in front of the door of the laundry room. He marched over to the front door, still rubbing his head to try and soothe the pain, as he opened it to see Rachel, a little panicked, but still as cute as ever.

"Are you ok Finn? What was that noise?" Concern layered in her voice, she stepped forward to grasp Finn's hand which was still on his head. "What happened?" she said, her voice raising an octave.

"I came rushing down the stairs..." he mumbled. "...with the laundry, and I tripped and banged my head on the wall" Her eyes grew wide at his words.

"Oh Finn!" she gripped his wrist tightly and dragged him towards the kitchen, closing the door behind her as she stepped in the house. She settled him on a stool as she rushed to fetch a pack of ice from the freezer.

Within minutes, she was standing beside him, holding a bag of peas on the back of his head, muttering soft words of comfort. Finn couldn't help but smile at her reaction, despite the throbbing pain in the back of his head. Rachel was a drama queen, but she really cared. Especially for him. He winced as she moved the bag of peas and pressed down lightly on the spot where the wall had hit him.

"Does it hurt a lot?" she asked, cooing over him like he were a child.

"Not as much now. Thanks Rach" She smiled as she took away the bag and began 'sorting out' his hair, stroking it lightly. Before putting the bag on the counter, she leant up on her tiptoes and placed a soft, chaste kiss on the small bump. He smiled to himself as he lifted his head; his eyes now level with Rachels. "Hey" he said dumbly.

"Hi" she soothed, still stroking his hair affectionately. "So, what are these jobs that need doing?" She smiled, taking her hand away from his head and moving to put the peas back in the freezer. Finn sighed, pulling the chore list from his back pocket.

"Here. My mom wrote them all out. It's going to take all day" he groaned, passing the slip of paper to Rachel, who was just taking her coat off, having not done so before. She rested it on the counter and read through the list. She nodded, as if to herself.

"Well this doesn't look too bad" Finn smiled at the thought; having Rachel here would make the chores easy. "Why doesn't Carole want you to wash Kurt's clothes?" she asked curiously, pointing to the chore and looking up at Finn. Finn laughed lightly as he got off the stool and moved over to her.

"Kurt's clothes are weird. I think a lot of them need to be washed in some special way. I have a feeling my mom doesn't want me washing them in case I ruin them. Kurt would kill me if I did" Both he and Rachel giggled to themselves as she placed the list in the front pocket of her blouse.

"Right then!" she chimed, a beaming smile on her face. "Let's get started! First things first; your room!" she pointed to the stairs, and made to march up to them, before Finn stopped her.

"Uh. Rachel, I don't think that's the greatest idea" He rubbed the back of his neck as he looked at her, a small half-smile gracing his face.

"And why not?" Rachel asked curiously, smoothing down her skirt.

"Well, because I've never had a girl in my room before. It might be...weird" Rachel giggled as she pushed lightly on his chest.

"Oh, come on Finn!" She moved past him and made her way up to his room, Finn close behind. "What do you expect me to find? Pornography?" She stopped in the hallway for a moment, turning slowly to face Finn, who looked a little uncomfortable. "You don't...have any...you know...'magazines'...do you?" she asked carefully. Finn shook his head violently.

"No! No! No! Of course not!" He waved his hands in front of him erratically, moving in front of her to stand in front of his bedroom door. "It's just...it's a dude's bedroom. So it's not gonna be all rosy-smelling and clean and...stuff" he muttered nervously. Rachel just smiled sweetly again.

"Oh Finn, I'm sure it's not that bad. Besides, you've seen my bedroom" she brushed past him as he mumbled under his breath.

"But yours was nice..."

As she stepped onto the threshold, Finn watched nervously as she surveyed his room; in Burt's house, his room was a little bigger than the one he had at his old house, but not by much. He had the same bed, which was far too small for him; the same desk, covered in homework; a trophy cabinet in the corner; and his drum kit, actually assembled, under the window, which poured a nice light into the room. She turned to him and smiled as he brushed his hand through his hair.

"Right!" she stated. "Let's get started!"

* * *

><p>Within a couple of hours, both he and Rachel had managed to clean up his room so that it looked almost unnaturally clean. The time spent tidying and cleaning was mostly spent chatting actively about something or nothing; he had found that with Rachel, he could talk about practically anything; movies, video games, his weird dreams filled with grilled cheese and other such random subjects. She too, enjoyed talking about things that Finn would, initially, never talk about, such as Barbara Streisand movies, Broadway, Rachel's fashion sense and so on.<p>

Once they'd finished with his room, they'd quickly made their way through the house, Rachel dusting excitedly, making sure to check every nook and cranny, while Finn just marched around with the vacuum. He'd won that dispute, citing that 'vacuuming was his favourite chore'. Rachel obliged, and let him strut around the house, vacuuming every free floor space he could reach. Rachel had to guide him at some points, insisting he actually move the furniture around, rather than just vacuuming around it. He complied and had quite some fun as he sucked up the various bits and pieces all over the floors of the house. Rachel had managed to do all the dusting and had almost finished washing the kitchen floor by the time Finn had finished vacuuming. She was just mopping up the last of the water when Finn came back from putting away the vacuum.

"Hey Rach, you didn't have to do that! These are my chores after all" she just shrugged as she rung out the mop.

"It's not a problem Finn. You looked like you were having fun" she winked at him as she pushed on the mop with all her might. Finn laughed at her tiny form straining to ring out the mop.

"Here. Let me do that" he motioned for her to give him the mop. Begrudgingly, she handed it to him, standing back and placing her hands on her hips, as he pushed down on the mop, causing a cascade of water to fall down into the bucket. She huffed and crossed her arms over her chest.

"It's only because you're so big and strong" she moaned, not realising she was complimenting him. He sniggered as he lifted the bucket of dirty water to the sink, pouring the waste down the drain.

"This body has to be good for something" he smiled as she blushed heavily, placing the bucket back down and wheeling it away, towards the cleaning closet.

As he returned, Rachel was eyeing the list curiously, crossing off a couple of things with a pen.

"Right, now we have to do some of the washing" Finn groaned.

"Can we not take a break? I'm really hungry" he pouted at her, making her giggle.

"Well let's put a load in first, then we can eat while it washes" Finn nodded enthusiastically as they both headed for the laundry room.

Rachel did most of the work, as Finn separated the clothes they had gathered into piles of lights, darks and whites. Despite how simple the system sounded, Finn still became confused when faced with a t-shirt that was half white, half black. Rachel just kept giggling as she loaded the first lot of clothes adding the detergent before switching on the machine.

They both retreated upstairs and Finn immediately went to the fridge, pulling out some ham and grabbing the bread, starting to make a sandwich. Rachel just stood awkwardly, rubbing her arms a little. After a minute, Finn turned to Rachel and gasped.

"Oh, Rachel, of course!" he dropped the half-prepared sandwich and moved over to the fridge, scanning through its contents. "My mom bought a load of vegan stuff the other day, after you came over, to make sure you had some food in the fridge" He heard her gasp a little while his head was lodged in the fridge. He looked up to see Rachel had her hand over her chest and her mouth was agape, her cheeks tinted a little pink. "What is it Rach?"

"Your mom bought me food? In case I came over?" Finn just nodded dumbly, looking at her as if it was obvious.

"Well, yeah. We don't want you to starve while you're here" he turned back to the fridge and continued scanning, just making out the light "That's so sweet" that fell from her lips.

"We have some 'couscous' whatever the hell that is. But it looks tasty. And we have a load of salad if you want it" Rachel skipped over and laid a hand on Finn's back.

"Leave it to me Finn. I'll figure something out" he turned and smiled at her.

"Ok" he said as he returned to his ham sandwich.

* * *

><p>After a few minutes, Finn and Rachel sat together on the counter; Finn with his ham sandwich and a packet of chips, and Rachel with a couscous wrap, filled with various leafy greens, peppers and tomato. Finn wasn't that appealed by it, but Rachel seemed to be enjoying it, so he just smiled as they both sat and ate their lunch in comfortable silence. After a while, once both of them had finished their lunches, and Rachel had put a second load into the washing machine, they both sat down to a soft drink, which they decided they would do before cleaning Finn's truck. They talked a little more, about various nothings of importance, until Rachel stated something rather out of the blue.<p>

"You know Finn, I don't actually know you all that well" Finn looked at her, confused.

"What?" Rachel shrugged, seemingly nonchalant.

"I don't know. I just thought there isn't that much that I actually know about you. Other than the basics" She leant over the counter and rested her head in the palm of her hands as Finn sat opposite her, his arms crossed over his chest. He smirked.

"Ok. Well ask me some questions and I'll answer them for you" she giggled before nodding. She pondered for a moment before speaking.

"What's your favourite colour?"

"Easy; Blue" Rachel nodded.

"Ok. Favourite smell?" Finn pondered.

"Pine trees. OR the smell of food. Any food" He smirked as she scrunched her face in mock offense.

"Well...favourite band or artist?" Finn sighed.

"Oooh. I dunno..." Rachel huffed.

"Well you should!" She looked at him sternly but he just pulled a confused expression, shrugging at her.

"What?" he asked, exasperated by Rachel's glare. After repeating it several times she finally pointed to herself, to which Finn gasped in realisation.

"Oh! Well it's obviously Rachel Berry!" he smirked as he said it, and Rachel grinned cheekily back at him.

"Ok. How about...favourite food?"

"Pfft. Grilled Cheese. Go"

"Favourite movie?"

"Braveheart"

"Favourite book?"

"Rachel...you know I don't read"

"Well what was the last book you read?"

"Something for English class? A play by that Shakespeare dude, I think..." Rachel sighed.

"Ok. Favourite song?" Finn smirked.

"Faithfully" Rachel blushed heavily.

"No seriously, what is your favourite song?" She eyed him curiously as he stared into space, pondering his answer.

"I dunno. Guess I like a lot of different songs...next question" he laughed as Rachel rolled her eyes.

"Fine. Favourite...sound?" Finn looked puzzled. "You know, what sound you like listening to the most?" she clarified. Finn blushed then and began to rub his neck.

"Well...um...If I'm honest...I love the sound..." he looked down at his feet, taking small glances back up at Rachel.

"Yes Finn?" She said impatiently.

"Well, I kinda...love the sound...the sound of your voice" he blushed crimson as the words left his mouth, leaving Rachel a little speechless. After a moment, her face grew the broadest smile that she could have possibly pulled. She stood up then, sauntering round the table over to him, grabbing his face gently, standing on her tiptoes and placing a soft kiss on his lips. As she pulled away, her smile still etched on her face, Finn just stared gawkily, before pulling that oh-so-familiar half-smile and gripping her in a tight hug. As he released her, Rachel moved over to the counter and put away the empty glasses they had been drinking from.

"So, shall we go clean your truck?" She chimed.

* * *

><p>Cleaning Finn's truck was a lot more interesting than Finn had previously thought. Rachel had got well and truly stuck in, grabbing a pair of his mom's washing up gloves and leaning into the backseat to pick out the rubbish on the floor. Finn smirked at the view from outside his truck; Rachel's rear end waving almost suggestively as she moved about inside the back. He shook the thoughts from his mind as he climbed in the front seat, doing the same thing Rachel was doing. Sifting through the rubbish that had built up in the front and back seats, Finn was surprised to find a wide assortment of litter; from old receipts, to McDonalds boxes and bags, and even a few pennies here and there. He was relieved that the weather was a lot cooler than it had been earlier in the week; otherwise the inside of his truck would have been like a sauna, making the chore almost unbearable.<p>

After they had cleared out most of the rubbish, Rachel dragged the vacuum from the house and led it outside to the drive. Having it plugged in inside the house, she began to take the nozzle and work intricately, vacuuming out everywhere she could reach in the backseat. Meanwhile, Finn took a dust cloth and began wiping down the dashboard and stereo system of his truck. Once Rachel had finished in the back, Finn hopped out and entered the house, returning shortly with a bucket of warm, soapy water and a couple of sponges.

After Rachel had finished vacuuming and the inside of Finn's truck looked almost brand-new, they began washing the outside of the truck, each taking a side to wash with the sponge. As they did so, Rachel sang merrily, Finn joining in whenever he knew the words. As Rachel finished up her rendition of 'Candle in the Wind' Finn noticed she was struggling to reach the roof of his truck. He smirked as he walked round to her side of the truck and leant over, showing off how far he could stretch. She huffed in faux annoyance.

"Show off" She stuck her tongue out at him as she plopped the sponge back into the bucket.

"You love it" he smirked, before turning his back on the little brunette. Then, all of a sudden, Finn felt a splash of water hit his back. He turned to see Rachel standing, the dripping wet sponge in her hand. She grinned cheekily, looking from Finn to the sponge. "Don't you dare, Rachel Berry!" he warned, but that just stirred her on more; she flicked the sponge at Finn, causing another splash of water to hit him right in the face. He stood, stunned for a moment, before dipping his own sponge in the water and flicking it in her direction, making her scream and practically soaking her skirt in the process. She stood, shocked, staring from her wet skirt back up to Finn who looked suddenly apologetic. He waved his hands quickly.

"I'm sorry Rachel! I'm really sorry!" He went to comfort her, but was met, instead, with a sponge to the face, causing him to step back, almost tripping over his own feet. When he regained his balance, Rachel had disappeared round the other side of the truck. He dipped his sponge back into the bucket and snuck round to see her crouching on the opposite side of the hood. He flicked the sponge violently in an attempt to soak her, but she simply dodged out of the way. He kept repeating this; soaking his sponge, before trying to hit an unarmed Rachel on the other side of the truck's hood. Soon, he began to get impatient, so he started chasing her around the truck; as she ran, half laughing and half screaming, she still managed to dodge Finn's soaking sponge.

After about ten minutes, Finn gave up chasing her and instead, opted to trick her. Picking up her sponge, which she'd left on his side of the truck, he soaked the both of them, throwing one in one direction and running in the opposite, with the second sponge in his hand, catching her as she hid away from the first shot. She was too late to react as Finn launched the soaking wet sponge which hit her directly in the chest. Again, she stood shocked, but this time a slight anger flickered in her eyes. Finn went back into his apologies, holding his hands up defensively and slowly approaching her as she stood, almost frozen, with her hands out to her sides, staring at her soaked blouse. Looking down at her, Finn couldn't help feel a sudden excitement reaching his manhood as he noticed Rachel's chest, the wet blouse clinging to body and turning see-through to reveal her pink bra. He gulped, trying to avoid looking at the area for too long. Of course, his momentary distraction gave Rachel the time to pick up her own soaking wet sponge and throw it straight at Finn's own chest, soaking him in almost the exact same place. He mimicked Rachel, standing frozen, looking down at his shirt and then back up at Rachel, who was biting her lip, the anger no longer in her eyes. Now both of them stood frozen, shirts soaking and clinging to their bodies. Finn had now become aware that his chest was clearly visible beneath his shirt. He didn't know for sure, but he could have sworn he saw Rachel staring. He took this chance to retaliate as launched himself at her, going to tickle her sides with all his might. She began laughing and giggling hysterically as Finn continued with his assault, both of them getting soaked from one another's wet clothes. But they didn't seem to care; Finn was having the time of his life, and he was pretty sure Rachel was too.

Their little tickling match was only broken up by the clear sound of Carole's car coming onto the drive. They stopped suddenly and stood, trying to look as innocent as possible. As she stepped out, she stared in wonder at the two teenagers in front of her; both soaking wet, and smiling stupidly.

"What's going on here?" she questioned, her voice not as angry as Finn initially thought.

"We-uh" Finn started.

"We were just finishing up cleaning Finn's truck" Rachel finished, smiling at Carole innocently.

"I can see that" she nodded towards Finn's truck, which was miraculously clean. "But what uh-" her attention was suddenly drawn to the fact that she could see Rachel's bra through her shirt, and shooting Finn a quick glare, she spoke up. "You're both soaked! Come on, let's get you inside!" She grabbed Rachel's hand and began dragging her inside the house. Rachel turned her head to look at Finn, a cheeky grin appearing on her face as she disappeared into the house. Finn followed soon after, bringing the bucket and sponges with him.

* * *

><p>As he entered the house, he could hear Rachel and his mother upstairs, so he began tipping away the bucket of water and putting them back in the cleaning closet. His mother soon came down the stairs sighing heavily.<p>

"She's just using the bathroom at the moment. She'll have to borrow some of your clothes while I dry hers off" she looked Finn up and down. "Can you tell me why Rachel is here in the first place Finn? You were supposed to be doing chores!" Finn spoke up defensively.

"I was doing the chores mom! Or at least Rachel and I were. I invited her over to help" he began nervously rubbing the back of his neck. "I just wanted some company while we did them. You can look in my room, and all around the house; we've done nearly everything on your list!" He smiled tentatively. Carole sighed.

"Ok. I believe you. It does look clean in here" she looked around the living room, as if seeing everywhere where Finn had vacuumed. "And I can see you were just messing around out there" she motioned to the front door. "But I hope you were behaving yourself Finn Hudson!" she warned, pointing a finger at him. Finn held his hands up in defense.

"Of course mom! I didn't mean it to happen! But it was just a bit of fun!" she nodded and smiled.

"Good. Just checking. Now I'm going to go upstairs and fetch you some clothes, take off your wet clothes here and I'll bring them down to you. You can get dressed down here" At that, she disappeared back up the stairs. Once she'd gone, Finn smirked to himself as the whole situation played in his head. He'd had a water fight with Rachel and he'd actually seen her bra, and now, he was about to strip, almost naked, in his living room, and Rachel was upstairs doing the exact same. He swallowed hard as the blood rushed south at the thought, and, to save any further embarrassment, he decided against stripping off until he actually had some clothes to change into.

His mother bought him his clothes and left him to get changed by himself. Once he'd done, he wandered up the stairs, and knocked tentatively on his bedroom door, unsure of whether Rachel would still be half-naked.

"Come in" he heard her sweet voice say from behind the door. He opened it carefully and was relieved (slightly) to see she was clothed. Or at least slightly clothed; she was wearing one of his T-shirts, which was far too big for her, and a pair of his old bike shorts. Her hair was damp and slightly frizzy, but Finn couldn't care; she looked adorable.

"Hi" he smiled as he sat down on the bed next to her, taking in her silky smooth legs, which he'd never actually seen in full, as they're usually covered by her knee-high socks or leggings. She smiled at him sweetly, a light blush covering her cheeks.

"I know this is far from my normal attire, but your mom doesn't have any clothes that would fit me" she giggled as Finn just gawped at her.

"It's cool" he smiled. "You look cute" She blushed even heavier at his words, and turned her head to the floor.

"Today was fun" she said, still looking at her feet. Finn smiled broadly.

"Yeah. Totally" He placed a hand on her exposed leg and a buzz went shooting through him the instant he did so. Her skin was soft and smooth, and he couldn't help stroking it with his thumb. He stopped, however, when he noticed her staring at his hand. He pulled back carefully, before smiling at her. "Thanks for coming over Rach. It would have been totally boring without you" She turned to look up at him and grinned broadly, before gripping him in a tight hug. He reciprocated and held her close, the scent of the shampoo on her hair, filling his nostrils. _His _shampoo. He smirked to himself at the thought. She then pulled away and laid a soft kiss on his lips, stroking his hair absentmindedly. "So what you wanna do now?" Finn questioned, the thought of a make out session passing his mind. Rachel seemed to read his mind as she leant forward to bring their lips back together, kissing more intensely. She pulled away suddenly, and gasped.

"Finn!"

"What is it?" He was a little downhearted at the loss of contact.

"We didn't finish your list of chores!" Finn sighed, shaking his head and laughing a little.

"It's fine Rach. My mom's home now, and if I remember rightly, I think there was only one chore left anyway. I think she's impressed I managed to get one done!" he sniggered to himself as Rachel relaxed, giggling back.

"I suppose so" She leant forward again, renewing the contact between them; kissing Finn rather more intensely than he had thought. She ran her fingers through his hair as his hands struggled to find a suitable place to sit. Eventually he settled them on her hips, and they sat like that, making out like their lives depended on it, their tongues dancing around one another, for a good few minutes. Even as his natural instincts and the reaction in his pants began to creep up on him, Finn kept a fair distance, and didn't move his hands the entire time. Rachel was sensitive and he didn't want to push it. Which was difficult, given the situation; Rachel was sitting there, wearing his clothes, probably not wearing a bra...that nearly sent him over the edge. He broke free of the kiss and smiled at Rachel's reaction; she looked shocked, as if she had done something wrong. He placed one more soft kiss on her lips to reassure her, before standing up and grabbing her hand.

"Come on. Let's go see if you're clothes are dry yet" Rachel smiled and stood up with him, the t-shirt falling almost to her knees. He smirked, before walking along with her, out of his room and down the stairs, all the while taking in the figure standing beside him; this short little brunette who he loved with all his heart. He couldn't quite stand it sometimes. It was like she was a part of him and he never wanted to let her go. Ever.

* * *

><p><strong>P.S.<strong> _Aww! Cute ending! I know, I'm sorry!_  
><em>I had fun writing up the questions and answers for Finn, but I'm not entirely sure how accurate some of the answers are, so you'll have to just bare with me. Any answers I did get were from research into Finn's character. So hopefully most of it can appear canon.<em>  
><em>I also want to say, I know this goes a little personal and a 'close', but I never intended too when I started it. It was more the fact that I started writing and it sort of spewed out of its own accord. I hope it's not too early in the Finchel relationship for that kind of situation. I'm saying "no", but I did try to cover it up. I'll make up for it later though.<em>

_As always, I love reviews, and I'm sure you'll all go crazy for this update. I'm actually thinking of concentrating more on 'Dear Diary' so this might not get updated as often over the next few weeks. But fear not, I will come back. In the meantime, you can go and read that fanfic if you wish. Or not, up to you._


	9. The Crazy Golf Date

_I'm SO sorry it's been so long. Real life and other such things have been getting in the way, but it seems I may be back in the swing of things. Fingers crossed!  
>I was surprised at the number of people who were interested in this story to be honest, but as long as there are people to read it; I'll keep on writing it. So here we are; a brand new chapter for Finchel's Summer of '10. I hope it's not too OOC, because in some places it might read like it; it's mostly a way of expressing Finn's feelings; or that's how it came out.<em>

_Anyway; enjoy!_

* * *

><p>"I'm not sure Finn. I mean, I've never done it before" Rachel whined.<p>

"Oh come on! You'll love it, I promise!" Finn nudged her side, smirking. She smiled, despite herself, and nodded gently.

"Ok fine" she pulled herself up to her full height; "But I get to go first!" she clamped her hands on her hips, giving Finn an intense look. He smirked again.

"Fine" She nodded; satisfied with her win; before trotting beside her boyfriend to the crazy golf course outside of the mall.

As they both approached the small wooden pay booth, Rachel relinquished her grip on Finn's hand to slip it into her handbag, in an attempt to fish out her purse. Just as she was about to withdraw it, she looked up to see that Finn had beat her to it; handing a couple of notes to the cheerful elderly gentleman sitting behind the glass. He took the notes and handed Finn two clubs, two golf balls, a score card and a small little pencil, which Finn subtly smiled over.

"Here you go guys!" he beamed, looking between the two teenagers.

Rachel looked up at her boyfriend and gave a small smile. She was just about to reach for one of the golf balls, when Finn placed it back onto the booth's counter.

"Could I get a pink one" he asked, somewhat nervously, pointing to the large pot of multicoloured golf balls situated next to the gentleman. He gave a directory glance at Rachel; to which the elderly man gave a small chuckle.

"Of course" Finn grinned in reply, taking the pink ball and handing it to Rachel, who looked at him for a second before her face cracked into a million-dollar smile. Finn's grin turned toothy as he mentally patted himself on the back for being so good at this 'boyfriend' stuff. While he was momentarily distracted, Rachel snatched one of the clubs from his hand and skipped along to the first hole.

"Come on Finn, let's play!" she shouted, as she hopped up and down excitedly; not catching the raised eyebrow-look that Finn gave the man in the booth.

As he approached the first hole, Rachel had already positioned her ball on the beginning spot and was lining up to take her shot.

"I thought you said you'd never done anything like this before?" Finn joked as he leant up against the fence, crossing his legs and arms over as he watched. She turned to face him, looking all-too-adorable in her summer dress which Finn thought made her look almost angelic.

"It's not rocket science Finn! It's quite simple really" she turned her back to him and lined herself up with the ball, her grip on the club a little awkward. Finn laughed as she tried to swing, but lost the club as she did so; sending it flying in the direction of her swing. She let out a small yelp and then turned round quickly and flashed Finn a glare. He stopped laughing immediately. She huffed, before picking up her unintentionally discarded club, looking a little defeated as she did so.

He took pity on her and stood up to approach her.

"Look; you're holding the club wrong. Let me show you" As he stepped towards her, Rachel flashed him a look that he couldn't' rightly read, before allowing him to take the club from her and position himself next to the ball.  
>"You need to bend over slightly, and hold it like this" he placed both his hands correctly on the handle of the club, adjusting himself so that he could swing freely. "From then, you swing. But not really hard; this isn't proper golf" he chuckled. Rachel just huffed, placing her hands on her hips and rolling her eyes slightly.<p>

"Are you good at everything Finn Hudson? Football, bowling and now golf? Are you some sort of sports genius?" She jaded, in a voice not unlike her usual steely tone. She crossed her arms in front of her chest as she eyed him carefully. He let out a small chuckle, before handing her the club.

"I've gotta be good at something" he shrugged nonchalantly, before stepping back; allowing Rachel to attempt to recreate his position.

He nodded silently as she did so, but noticed she was still standing wrong; her back still rather straight and rigid. Almost subconsciously, Finn found himself standing up and slowly approaching her from behind; but he did so cautiously, so as not to scare her. As he wrapped his arms around her small frame and covered her hands with his, he felt her flinch slightly, and he, himself, could feel his heart race a little; they hadn't been this close in a long time and her presence still did funny things to him. And it was clear that it was the same for Rachel, who just about dared to look over her shoulder to see Finn's head ridiculously close to her own. She could feel his chest against her back, and her thoughts quickly became fogged up as the sound of his raggedy breath filtered into her ear. She gulped.

Finn took a slow breath, trying to calm himself down, before leaning over slightly and gripping the outside of Rachel's hands on the club. Despite the proximity, he kept himself from pressing too much against her; praising their height difference and his lengthy arms. As he managed to pull his thoughts together, he muttered to her with as much confidence as he could muster;

"You need to hold the club like you were" he repositioned her hands in his, not paying attention to her rapid breathing. "But you need to bend over slightly..." he was a bit nervous about this, because he could tell this was a little more intimate than it really should be; considering they'd only been dating for just over a month. He waited for a second to ensure Rachel was ok; to which she responded by nodding and doing as he said; bending forwards a little. Finn took a gulp and tried to concentrate on the golf club, rather than the fact that Rachel's backside was now pressed against his crotch. He was surprised he'd lasted this long, given his 'mailman' issue. As she positioned herself right, he quickly stepped back. And breathed a heavy sigh of relief; subtly adjusting his pants to hide any potential sign of his very prominent 'problem'.

"Ok" he choked out. "Now take a small swing" Rachel remained still for a moment, and Finn thought he might have scared her, but after a minute, he watched her take a deep breath and then take her swing. It wasn't quite as forceful as the first time, and the ball managed to soar across the green and towards the hole. She stood upright and turned to face him; smiling broadly as she did so.

"See? Easy" he gestured to the ball and returned her smile. He stood up himself, and he could've sworn he saw a blush creep across her face as he approached her. Placing his own ball on the spot and lining up his shot, he quickly swung the club, causing his ball to joins hers at the end of the hole. Both smiling, they trotted towards their respective balls, and Finn watched as Rachel mimicked her previous position and took another shot. This time, her ball flew from its spot within inches of the hole, and soared in the direction they'd come from. Finn sniggered, earning him a scolding.

"Just don't hit so hard next time" he advised. Finn then took his shot and got it in the hole. Reaching into his pocket he pulled out the score card and observed the numbers. "So this hole is par two; so that gives me two points" After marking down his score, he looked up to see Rachel lining herself up again, at the start of the hole, and knocking the ball back in his direction; a look of fierce determination in her gaze. After it landed, she quickly marched up and set herself up again, this time tapping it lightly so that it plopped down into the hole. Finn cheered a little, but stopped quickly when Rachel gave him a stern look. He cleared his throat.

"Ok, so you did it in four, so you get four points" He smiled at her, as she looked at him.

"So you got two points, and I got four points, surely that means I'm winning already?" she suggested, slight confusion in her voice. Finn stuttered.

"Um, no. I think it's whoever has the least points at the end, wins. At least that's what I always did with my mom" he gave Rachel a soft smile, but she just crossed her arms in frustration.

"Well that just sounds silly. Are you sure you're doing it right Finn?" Finn rolled his eyes and grunted.

"Come on Rach, it's just a bit of fun. What does it matter who wins or loses? Come on. Next hole"

Finn stepped off towards the next hole, Rachel trotting behind, but not before huffing over-dramatically.

* * *

><p>The next hole was a little more difficult, as the ball had to traverse a hill. Rachel eyed the hill suspiciously, before setting her ball on the spot and lining herself up again. Finn watched in amusement as she stared from the ball to the hill and back again, her tongue poking out of her mouth a little in concentration.<p>

As she spent her time preparing her swing, Finn took the moment to admire his minute little girlfriend. He'd found himself doing it a lot lately; sometimes he just liked to take a step back and watch Rachel in all her glory. Sure she could be bossy and dramatic, and people often jaded her on her looks and her wardrobe; but in her own way she was just perfect. She was enthusiastic, and dedicated, and her clothing style, in his opinion, was cute; he'd come to love her knee-high socks, skirts and sweaters. There was something about the way she wore them that made them all inherently 'Rachel Berry'. On anyone else, it might look stupid, but on her, it just looked adorable. And it made him want to kiss her senseless. Perhaps even do a little more than that as well...

As his mind wandered inappropriately, as it often did lately, Finn couldn't help but imagine what an intimate relationship with Rachel would be like; it would probably be amazing and romantic and all that mushy stuff. And if it ever got super serious, it would most definitely be awesome. But of course Rachel was a little prudish. That's not to say she wasn't aware of the more private _affairs_ that they might fulfil; it was more the fact that she seemed dedicated to making sure she was ready and certain when they did...but then again, he probably wouldn't be able to control himself even if they did go a little further.  
>Before, with Quinn, he had always been able to deal with his mailman issue. Or at least he'd be able to until it got hot and heavy. But with Rachel...even the very first kiss he'd shared with her had set him off. So there was no telling what would happen if certain 'bases' were involved...<br>And now that he thought about it; that must have been some kind of sign. Back then when he shared his first kiss with the girl who was now pottering around, trying to perfect her shot; it must have been some kind of sign that Rachel Berry was meant for him. It should have been clear from the way her presence did things to him. Things he couldn't rightly explain. Like that warm feeling that often overcame him when he thought about her too much. Like now, as he watches her knock the golf ball up and over the hill, giving a triumphant squeal as she turns to look at Finn. As she does, her face falters, and she tilts her head slightly in confusion.

"Something wrong Finn?" she asked curiously. Finn shook his head to readjust his concentration.

"Uh, uh. No. Nope. Fine" he gave her a small smile as she placed her hands on her hips.

"Were you even paying attention? Did you even see my glorious shot over the hill?" she gestured towards the hill, and the subsequent ball that lay on the other side. Finn rubbed the back of his neck and smiled.

"Yeah. I saw" he lied. "Nice one Rach!" He cleared his throat before placing his own ball on the spot and lining himself up; taking a shot and watching as the ball slowly crept up the hill and then toppled down the other side. Nodding to himself, he turned to see Rachel, her arms crossed in front of her, humming in quiet thought.

"Well done" she said simply, before walking over the hill and taking her next shot. Finn sighed, shaking his head slightly, but smiling all the same. He'd never get tired of Rachel Berry.

* * *

><p>The next few holes were pretty much the same; Finn thinking very lightly of the situation, whereas Rachel seemed very concentrated on every one; even going so far as to dictate certain tactics and plans she might use to pass obstacles and dodge areas of sand an water that littered some of the holes. On one particular hole, the ball had to pass under a windmill to reach the hole on the other side. As they reached it, Rachel gave a groan.<p>

"Now how am I supposed to put a ball through the hole with the windmill in the way?" she moaned as she gestured to the large propeller slowly going around. Finn chuckled as he placed her ball down for her.

"That's the point Rach. You have to time it right" he gave her a smirk before settling himself back against the fence. Rachel sighed as she lined herself up for her shot. Finn watched in amusement as she watched with anticipation, before quickly tapping the ball towards the windmill. It flew quickly and ricocheted off the windmill blade and off in another direction. Rachel groaned loudly, before stomping her foot overdramatically. Finn had to suppress a chuckle before fetching the ball from its landing place. He silently gave her the ball and gave her a supportive look as she snatched the ball from his hand and placed it back on the starting spot. Finn returned to the fence as he watched her retake the shot; and succeeded in hitting the windmill blade again. This time she grunted even louder, stomping off to get the ball herself and repeating the process.

After four unsuccessful tries, in a particularly dramatic show, Rachel threw the club to the ground in defeat, and stomped over to where Finn was standing; a little shocked at her outburst. She crossed her arms in front of her and stared down at her feet, her face contorted into a scowl. She remained unusually silent so after a second, Finn spoke up.

"Rach?" he tried. She didn't respond. "Rachel?" Again, she kept silent. He sighed before positioning himself in front of her; her gaze still firmly fixed on her feet. He placed his hands on her shoulders and bent down in an attempt to look her in the eyes. "Come on Rachel, it's just a game of golf" She sighed dramatically before lifting her head and opening her mouth; a full-blown rant spewing from it;

"Yes, I know it's just a game of golf Finn, but you know me, and I always put one hundred percent effort into whatever I do, which includes a silly game of crazy golf. And that's exactly it! Why am I trying so hard at a game that should be so effortlessly easy? Well it seems that this golf course in particular seems to be a lot more difficult than other similar courses, and each hole seems unnaturally different and difficult; I mean really; a windmill? How is that even relevant at this point? There isn't even a theme to it! There's a windmill and hills, and I swear I saw a pirate statue over there..." before she could continue, her hands flailing in various gestures, Finn leant forward and pressed his lips to hers in an simple kiss, silencing her immediately. After a second or so he pulled back and cracked out his trademark half-smile that he knew would make her calm down; which it did. "No fair" she smirked, looking up at him with not a trace of frustration on her face. Finn chuckled lightly before giving another gentle, chaste kiss on her lips.

"Now do you want to try again?" She nodded tentatively before standing up and repositioning herself for her shot.

She stood there for a while, swaying from side to side, as if to judge the power of the swing, her tongue poking out of her mouth in concentration, before she finally took a chance. Finn held his breath as the ball zoomed from its starting point, straight under the windmill and out the other side. Rachel gave a ridiculously loud squeal and began leaping frantically, dropping the club and clapping her hands together. Finn smiled to himself and was about to congratulate her on her well-aimed shot, when she threw herself at him; her hands clasping round his neck and her body almost pushing him to the ground. Fortunately, his height gave him an advantage, and he was able to keep his footing while still holding on to his excited little girlfriend. He laughed wholeheartedly as she pulled away; her arms still wrapped behind his head and his planted firmly on her waist. All of a sudden, as he looked into those deep brown eyes, he found himself transported back to a time where they had shared a similar embrace. As if feeling the same thing, Rachel leant up and placed a deep kiss on his unsuspecting mouth, before pulling back and smiling broadly.

Part of his mind wanted him to forget that moment; when they had shared a kiss during bowling; because he knew his reasons behind that entire 'date' were shameful, and he wished he hadn't have done it. But then again, despite his loyalties lying in the wrong place, the feelings he felt that day were as real as anything, and it was only now he could dwell on them. So instead of feeling guilty, as he held the brunette in his arms, he bent forward and gave her another deep kiss, forgetting about the very public place they were in. She reciprocated in earnest, playing with the hair at the back of his head; roughing it up as their lips danced together.

After a while, he pulled away, slightly breathless, before smiling so broadly he was concerned his face might fall off. She then cracked an oh-so-familiar smile that he knew was only reserved for him. He wasn't a very perceptive teen, but when it came to Rachel, he knew which of her smiles were dedicated to him; and this one did funny things to his stomach.

"I love you" she whispered after a while, their bodies still locked together. He placed a quick peck on her lips before pulling away.

"I love you too but um..." he reached round and scratched the back of his neck, looking around nervously and suddenly becoming well aware of their surroundings. "We should probably get back to the game" he saw a couple of younger kids out of the corner of his eye, and he suddenly felt very embarrassed about his and Rachel's public display of affection. Rachel seemed to read his mind as she eyed the course around them. She hastily began brushing herself off.

"Of course. Yes" she cleared her throat before grabbing her club from the floor. "Your shot Finn!" she said; the familiar glee in her tone, ever so present.

* * *

><p>The last few holes pass by before Finn even has a chance to savour them; he just enjoys watching as Rachel enthusiastically takes each hole, head-on, with that familiar enthusiasm and dedication. It makes him laugh. It makes her smile. The entire time they act like two lovestruck, smitten teenagers. And perhaps that's what they are; but in that moment, as Rachel gets her first hole in one at the 18th hole, and she leaps into his arms again, kissing him hard on the mouth; that's all he wants to be.<p>

* * *

><p>Finn returned the club and balls to the cheery elderly gentleman, sometime later; a grin permanently etched onto his face, and a small brunette clinging to his arm.<p>

"Thanks" he said as he handed them over, Rachel smiling broadly between them.

"Thank you very much!" Rachel shouted as they left the golf course, Finn chuckling at his excitable girlfriend. "Well that was fun!" she chimes, leaning into him slightly.

"Yeah. We should totally do it again sometime" He nodded to himself as they began the slow walk back home. Just then he felt a tug at his jacket; he looked down to see Rachel's face fallen in sort of half-wonder. "What is it Rach?" he pondered, concern layering his voice.

"Finn. We never found out who won!" she looked up at him; her eyes sparkling in the twilight. He smiled nervously, but not before scratching the back of his head with his free hand.

"Oh yeah. Must have forgotten about the score card" he gave her a lopsided smile and a shrug but she still looked a little down heartened. "Oh well. Let's say you won" he chances, to which she looks up at him and smiles. She nods silently before turning her attention back to the pavement. After a moment's silence she perks up.

"I probably would have won anyway" she said boldly, not looking up at Finn as she spoke. He coughs a little.

"Uh, that's a little...um" he was about to interject when she looked back up at him and smirked, soon breaking out into laughter at the look of confusion and slight offense on Finn's face.

"I was joking Finn" she said, as she tried to catch her breath. "We both you know you're the more sports-orientated individual". Finn sighed in relief, chuckling lightly as he watched her stroke her hand over his.

"Oh. Ok" was all he could mutter, before she leant up and placed a chaste kiss on his lips. He smiled and pulled her closer, her entire body practically moulding against him.

"Come on then handsome" she mumbles. "Let's go home"

Finn has to smile to himself. For the first time in a long while, he felt happy and content. And it was all because of the small brunette standing beside him. Having her around made him feel on top of the world. And nothing could ever bring him down.

* * *

><p><em>I know, I know; it's not ver long and it get's all soppy and mushy towards the end, but considering the finale, can you really blame me? I need my Finchel to be happy! And I'm still getting into the swing of things so you'll have to bare with me.<br>Anyway, thanks for reading. Sorry again for the long wait and any ideas you might have for Finchel dates would be ideal. Thanks_ .


	10. The Rainy Day

**Note**:_ I will try and get some more chapters done for this fic, but seeing as I'm running short on ideas/inspiration, it may not be for much longer. (Sorry!)_

_But anyway, here's a new chapter for you; in this one, Finn and Rachel take a walk in the rain. It's kind of a rambly one, because I didn't go into it with any clear idea of what was going to happen so...let's see where it goes._

* * *

><p>Rachel stared out the window as the rain rapped lightly against it; echoing the sound throughout her room. She sighed as she plopped herself back down on her bed. The weather had been so good the last few weeks, but only now had it decided to take a turn for the worst; and she and Finn had planned to go out again today...or at least she had, and was hoping he would go along with it. As he often did. But now it looked like that wasn't going to happen and she let out another exasperated sigh at the thought of staying inside the house all day.<p>

She was momentarily distracted from her moping by the incessant buzzing of her cell phone which vibrated on top of her make-up counter. Plodding over to it she couldn't help but smile as she saw Finn's name flashing on the front. Flipping it open, she smiled as she spoke.

"Hey Finn" she giggled.

"Hey Rach! I was wandering if you wanted to do something today? Like, we could totally go for a walk or something if you like?" He seemed unusually enthusiastic. Rachel turned and looked out the window; noting how the rain hadn't let up at all and the clouds still seemed relentlessly thick.

"But Finn, it's pouring with rain?" she reasoned, sitting herself down on the bed.

"Nah, it's only a bit of drizzle" he insisted cheerfully, not seeming to be bothered by the weather. "I love this kind of weather. So I thought we could go out and just have a walk in the rain or something" he paused for a second before mumbling. "But uh, if you don't want to that's fine"

Rachel found herself quickly stopping him; "No, no! Finn its fine" she beamed to herself at the romanticism of a walk in the rain; it was secretly something she had on her bucket list; kissing in the rain a la 'The Notebook'. She sighed somewhat dramatically down the phone before relenting; "Of course we can go out. I'll just have to fish out my rubber boots from my closet" she giggled a little as Finn's voice suddenly grew more excited.

"Awesome! Shall I come round in ten then?" he asked, seemingly desperate to get out in the rain. Rachel just laughed at how adorable he was.

"Of course. I'll be waiting" she teased before standing up and wandering over to her closet, the phone still held to her ear.

"Ok. I'll see you in a bit!" Finn said joyfully, before hanging up and allowing Rachel the use of her hands to search around her closet for her little pink rubber boots. She hadn't worn them in a while but she hoped they would suffice in this kind of weather. She took another look out the window and noticed how the rain had let up a little; appearing as a fine mist, rather than a downpour, and she smiled; even on days like this, Finn Hudson could brighten up her day.

* * *

><p>Finn was at the front door in almost record time, which surprised her; but of course, Rachel had obviously been properly prepared, and was ready and waiting for him in her ensemble of chic pink water-proof clothing; raincoat, boots and umbrella included. She opened the door to see him decked out similarly, wearing a fancy blue raincoat over the top of his usual plaid shirt. She had to laugh at the grin that stretched across his face as he greeted her.<p>

"Hey Rachel. Ready to go?" he gestured his arm for her to take. She bit her bottom lip unconsciously before nodding, smiling up at him and taking his arm in hers.

"Just popping out dad!" she called out into the house. There was a pause before one of her father's voices grew uncharacteristically high as they shouted;

"What? In this weather?" Hiram poked his head round the corner and into the hallway where he gawped a little at Finn and Rachel.

"Yes Dad. Finn wanted to go for a walk, so we are" Finn just smiled nervously.

"I hope that's ok Mr Berry" he reasoned, scratching the back of his neck. Hiram let out a small sigh before nodding.

"Of course, of course. Go on" he gestured to the door. "But don't you dare come back with a cold Miss Rachel Barbara!" He pointed to her with a careful glint in his eye. Rachel rolled her eyes.

"I won't dad. I promise" she blew him a kiss before stepping out into the rain with Finn. "Bye!" she waved, before shutting the front door and skipping down the front steps; Finn in tow.

"So where do you want to go first?" she asked, looking up at her boyfriend as she clung protectively to his arm; the light rain sprinkling her face as they walked. Finn shrugged.

"I dunno. I was thinking we could just walk" he mumbled as they strode down the path. "You know; walk and talk. See where we end up" He turned and smiled at Rachel, who responded by mimicking the action.

"Of course" she said, tugging at his jacket. "That's a very nice coat you're wearing Finn" she beamed. "Makes you look very dapper" Finn turned a confused face at her.

"Thanks but...dapper's good isn't it?" he questioned, looking thoroughly confused. Rachel just giggled before nodding gently.

"Yes Finn. Dapper is good. It's British I think. Means handsome and well-dressed" Finn's face contorted into a beaming smile as he looked down at her.

"Thanks Rach!" he nudged her side a little with the arm she was currently gripped onto. "You look nice too. All cute in your pink outfit" He laughed lightly as Rachel's face grew red.

"Thank you. I wouldn't have worn it, but these were the only waterproofs I had. I shall have to go shopping at some point" she sighed, kicking at the small puddles beneath her feet with her little pink boots. "I didn't know whether it looked childish or something" Finn shook his head.

"Nah, you look fine. Adorable even" it was his turn to blush as Rachel turned to him and grew a beaming smile.

"Come on handsome" she said, pulling him along a little further. "Let's go see what we can do" She laughed wholeheartedly as she skipped through the ever-deepening puddles beneath her feet, whilst Finn smirked and picked up his pace to keep up with his over-enthusiastic and energetic girlfriend.

* * *

><p>They walked for a good ten minutes before they reached anywhere of interest; the rain continued relentlessly, but that did nothing to dampen the spirits of the two lovestruck teens. Their conversation flowed easily and Rachel found herself laughing at Finn more than she felt should be necessary.<br>She looked up into the sky, appearing slightly nervous at the thought of a heavy downpour.

"I wish I'd brought an umbrella" she thought out loud. Finn laughed.

"Nah, its fine Rachel. It's just a bit of drizzle" he stopped short for a moment, his pace slowing and his face falling slack. Rachel noticed almost immediately, eyeing him carefully.

"What is it Finn?" she asked curiously, tugging at his jacket sleeve. Snapping back to reality, Finn turned his face to hers and let out a small smile.

"Nothing. Don't worry about it" He tried to avoid her gaze but Rachel Berry was persistent, and she knew Finn better than anyone.

"No, something's up. I can tell" She stopped for a moment in the middle of the street, pulling him round to face her; her expression stern yet comforting. "Whats wrong Finn?" she tried again. Finn let out a short sigh.

"Drizzle" he mumbled, not looking directly at her, but finding the falling raindrops in the puddles beneath their feet, simply fascinating.

"Pardon?" Rachel asked curiously, bending her head to encourage Finn to look at her. He let out another sigh as he finally looked her in the eye.

"Drizzle...that was what I was going to call her" It didn't take Rachel long to figure out to whom he was referring. She gripped his arm tighter. As much as she found the subject of Quinn's baby a tough one; even though the baby was not technically Finn's; she felt even worse for him; especially after the disastrous affair of him finding out the truth of the situation. She leant her head on his shoulder, trying to comfort him as best as she could.

"I'm sorry Finn" she whispered gently. He let a genuine smile creep onto his lips as he looked down at the girl whose head leant against his arm. He let out a sigh as he thought about it. The sting was still there, but it was a dull pain that he was getting used to. He was glad Rachel was so accepting and understanding of the situation. He loved that about her. Even though she could be somewhat selfish a lot of the time, when it came to her friends, she could be almost entirely selfless. And she was kind too; she hadn't even laughed at his stupid baby name suggestion. And that told him something; Rachel was almost too good to be true. And he loved her for it.

"Thanks" he murmured, feeling himself warm a little at their proximity.

After a couple of minutes of comfortable silence, Rachel started laughing infectiously as Finn started fidgeting with his hair, noting how his usual intricate hairstyle had been utterly destroyed by the rain, and had formed a mop on the top of his head.

"It's a shame really" Rachel noted out loud. Finn paused, looking to her with a curious expression.

"What?"

"Oh, sorry" Rachel blushed, having realised her verbal vomit. "I was just saying; it's a shame about your hair; I usually like it when it's all spiked up" she gestured to his head; fighting the urge to run her hand through it. Finn just smirked as he brushed it down again.

"Yeah. That's the only bad thing about this weather. But it doesn't seem to be affecting your hair very much" he nodded to Rachel's luscious locks, which cascaded over her coat. Rachel sighed.

"I beg to differ" she started fidgeting with the strands of hair that had started to curl due to the rain. "The rain's made my hair all curly" she huffed, looking down at the ever-increasing curls. Finn shrugged, looking rather intently and honestly as he spoke.

"I dunno. I think it looks nice like that. Like...really beautiful" at the last word Rachel shot her head up and her eyes darted back and forth between Finn's, unconsciously looking for some hint of a lie. Finn retracted under her gaze, coughing a little and looking away awkwardly. "Um. Anyway...uh...look, there's a coffee shop over there. Fancy a bite to eat?" he pointed away towards a small cafe, trying to distract both him and Rachel from the strangely intense moment. Rachel's eyes followed the direction of his finger and her mouth turned up into a smile as she saw the building.

"Yay! Come one Finn! Let's have something nice and warm to drink!" she giggled excitedly, practically pulling Finn along to the shop.

* * *

><p>As they entered, Rachel shook her hair out, as did Finn; but a lot less graciously. They seated themselves on a small table for two, by the window. Finn eyed the menu quickly before making his decision. He turned his gaze to Rachel, who had removed her coat and was eyeing the menu critically. His experience in this area told him that Rachel could be choosy, so he made himself comfortable, taking off his coat, while she made her decision.<p>

After a few minutes of pondering Rachel nodded to herself before telling Finn her order;

"I'll have a green tea and bowl of salad" she smiled cheerfully as Finn stood up and wandered over to the counter. As he waited in line, Rachel eyed the patrons around the small cafe/coffee shop. As she did so, she started as she spotted a familiar face that entered the shop shortly after; Tina wandered in, wearing a Goth-appropriate raincoat that practically dwarfed her frame and chatting animatedly on her cell phone. It must have been a rather humorous conversation she was having; evident by the large smile plastered on her face. Just as she passed her, Rachel shot up excitedly.

"Tina!" she cheered, making the teen Goth turn in mild shock, almost dropping her phone in the process. She let out a shaky laugh as she realised the source of the loud voice. She mumbled something into the handset before pocketing the phone. She smiled warmly as she greeted Rachel.

"Hi Rachel"

"Hey Tina!" Rachel beamed, standing up from her seat. "Fancy seeing you here?" she laughed lightly, as did Tina.

"Yeah. I was just on my way...um to see a movie" Tina winced slightly, cursing herself as if she'd just let slip a secret.

"Oh who are you going with?" Rachel asked curiously. Tina seemed slightly anxious for a moment, genuinely stuttering her words as she spoke.

"Oh, it's no one you know" she forced a smile. Rachel just shrugged; evidently nonplussed.

"Oh, well that's nice. I hope you have a nice time" she smiled warmly, sitting herself back down.

"So are you alone or...?" Tina offered, eyeing the dark-coloured coat that lay on the back of the seat opposite her. Rachel chuckled and smiled down at her lap.

"No, no" she muttered. She nodded towards the long queue. "I'm here with Finn" Tina nodded lightly before turning to look to the queue in question; quickly spotting the freakishly tall teenager in the plaid shirt. As if he could feel their stares, Finn turned round and, realising one of his Glee friends were here, gave a goofy grin and a hearty wave. Rachel chuckled at his adorableness before resting her elbows on the table and looking to Tina, gesturing for her to take a seat in Finn's chair.

"Sit down Tina. Finn'll be a while I think" Rachel chuckled as Tina made herself comfortable.

"Thanks" she smiled.

"So are you having a nice summer?" Rachel asked. Tina paused for a moment, as if collecting her thoughts.

"Uh, it's been ok. Mainly uneventful" she replied, subtly playing with a loose thread on her gloves. "I went to a-uh-holiday camp thing during the first couple of weeks but other than that; not much has happened" She gave a stiff nod before turning her attention back to Rachel. "What about you? How have things been with you?" Rachel smiled warmly, averting her gaze a little.

"It's been...lovely" she brought her gaze up to look at Tina, who was smirking at her knowingly.

"So uh...how have things been with you and Finn?" she muttered, keeping her voice low but still holding an air of curiosity; every now and then glancing carefully behind her, at Finn.

Rachel let out a small giggle. "Things have been amazing" she confessed, sighing to herself. "Finn has been nothing but a gentleman since we started dating...well, dating _properly_ that is" she gazed longingly over at her boyfriend as he told the girl behind the counter his order. Rachel could feel a sting of jealously at the attractive blonde, but tried to suppress it as she turned back to Tina, who was chuckling.

"You know, I always rooted for you two when it first came out that you liked each other" Tina smirked, looking at the grin that stretched across Rachel's face.

"Really?" she inquired, not bothering to hide her excitement. Tina chuckled before nodding gently.

"I think all of the Glee club did" she sat back a little. "Well...those not on the Cheerios anyway" she gave another chuckle, which Rachel mimicked. They sat laughing and chatting for a little while before soon enough, Finn returned with a tray of food.

"Hey Tina" he smiled genuinely.

"Hey Finn" there was a pause as the three teens looked between each other. Suddenly Tina shot up. "Oh sorry! I'm in your seat" Finn gave out a hearty chuckle as Tina shifted out of the chair.

"It's ok" He gave her a warm smile before taking her place at the table. "Thanks" he nodded as he placed the tray of food down on the table.

"Well I'll leave you two on your date" Tina gave Rachel a cheeky wink before smiling. "Was nice catching up!" She gave a small wave as she wandered off to join the queue.

"Well that was nice" Rachel sighed as she took a sip of her tea.

"Hmm?" Finn mumbled through a mouth full of breakfast muffin that he'd already impatiently tucked into. Rachel giggled.

"I said, 'well that was nice'. You know...seeing Tina" Finn gulped and let a grin spread across his face.

"Yeah. Feels like ages since I saw any of the other Glee guys" Rachel smirked. Finn's brow creased slightly, looking away as his mind seemed to ponder for a moment. "I didn't know you got on so well with Tina though" Finn questioned, looking curiously at Rachel. She just shrugged.

"Well it can't be a surprise. Though she lacks my years of vocal training and my acute ear, she is definitely one of the more favourable members of the club" Rachel lectured, playing with her salad a little. Finn smirked at that; noting how she often slipped into her 'diva' form whenever the subject of performing arose. He found it endearing. "Plus, I think she's one of the more...down to earth members" Finn nodded.

"Yeah. She's always so chill in class...well...except for the crying" Finn joked, chuckling a little. Rachel giggled.

"We shouldn't laugh" Rachel jaded, pointing her fork in Finn's direction. "She's just emotional. Just like me!" Rachel's voice lifted at the latter end of her sentence, to which Finn couldn't help but guffaw. "What?" Rachel glared, looking at Finn in that steely way she often did when she was pissed.

"Well...Tina's emotional...but she's nowhere near as emotional as..." he stopped short as he caught Rachel's gaze; watching as her eyes glinted a little; her bottom lip sticking out slightly. "Sorry. I mean she's not as...in touch with her emotions as you are" Finn tried, eyeing her carefully from across the table. She kept her gaze; almost cold as stone, were it not for the sly smile that couldn't help but creep onto her face as she watched Finn panic.

"It's ok Finn" she chuckled. "I know I can be a diva sometimes. You don't have to tiptoe around it" She gave him a warm smile as she settled into her salad. Finn's smile grew wide then, and he couldn't help but reach out and grasp Rachel's free hand, which rested on the table.

"And that's why I love you" he found himself saying, causing Rachel to bolt upright, looking at him intensely. After an impossibly long moment, her eyes began to soften in that all-too-familiar way, and Rachel found herself staring at Finn as she often did; as if everything he did was a miracle, and that he was the reason she was still breathing. Finn smirked with that familiar half-grin, before releasing her and going back to wolfing down his breakfast muffin. Rachel was still transfixed for a moment; revelling in the air of love that surrounded the two teens at that moment.

It was quiet for a moment as the two of them tucked into their brunch; Finn soon finishing his breakfast muffin and his cup of hot chocolate. He sat for a while, watching as Rachel munched on her salad tentatively. Finn smirked.

"What?" Rachel perked up, looking at his expression curiously.

"You always eat like...so carefully" he laughed, watching as one of her eyebrows rose.

"Well is that strange? That I don't want to look like a pig in front of my boyfriend?" Finn's stomach still did funny things when Rachel referred to him as her boyfriend. Of course it was true. But that didn't mean it wasn't strange, in a nice way, to hear.

"Well no. But like...you don't have to worry about grossing me out or anything. I'm sure I've seen worse" he laughed lightly as Rachel set down her fork and swallowed her mouthful.

"I'm sure you have. However seeing as we are in a public place; I would like to appear as presentable and graceful as possibly; and wolfing down my food like there's no tomorrow is not my idea of graceful" she jaded, pointing her fork accusingly at him. Finn blushed a little.

"Sorry...but I was hungry" he offered, shrugging at her. Rachel let out a small giggle.

"It's fine Finn. In fact I think it's rather endearing; how much you love food. They always say the way to a man's heart is through his stomach" she smiled to herself as she continued picking through her salad daintily. Finn smirked as he leant back on his chair, patting his stomach appreciatively.

"I think they're right" he said, laughing wholeheartedly as Rachel's face flushed rosy pink. "Plus, I've tasted your cooking; so..." he shrugged as the corner of his mouth rose in that familiar way.

* * *

><p>It wasn't long before Rachel finished her salad; carefully stacking the crockery and cutlery on the tray and taking it back over to the counter.<p>

"You know there are people to do that for you Rachel?" Finn noted, to which Rachel just shooed him away.

"I know, but I think it's nice to lend a helping hand" she said, handing the tray to the blonde girl on the opposite side of the counter. As she did so, with Finn standing behind her, she eyed the girl carefully; noting how the girl kept continually glancing at Finn. Rachel huffed under her breath; letting the girl take the tray from her with a sickly sweet "thanks", before gripping Finn's arm tightly, in full view of the blonde. "Come on then babe" Finn's eyebrows shot up into his hair at the latter word; looking in surprise as Rachel dragged him from the shop. She felt triumphant as they walked out; not taking a second to look back at the girl in the coffee shop.

The rain was still relentless, but it had at least let up into a very fine mist, which both of them could hardly feel.

"What was that?" Finn asked as they headed away from the shop. Rachel looked up at him curiously, sporting a cheekily innocent grin.

"What was what?" she asked, fighting not to let out a loud chortle.

"You called me...'babe'?" He still looked genuinely shocked and curious, which made Rachel's reserve falter almost completely. She fell into a fit of giggles, as Finn just watched, unsure of quite what was happening. After a moment she caught her breath and held onto Finn's arm a little tighter.

"I saw the way that girl in the shop was looking at you..." she daren't look up into his eyes; instead keeping her eyes locked to the ground. Finn grew a beaming smile before nudging her side.

"Was someone jealous?" he teased, to which Rachel blushed crimson.

"Maybe..." she muttered. Finn just laughed out loud then, making Rachel dart her head up and look at him pleadingly. "It was the way she was looking at you...I had to make sure she knew you were taken" she sighed as she looked back down at her boots. Finn smirked again, tugging her closer to him.

"Well I'm sure she knows now" he noted, looking ahead of him as they wandered through the deserted streets of Lima. "A bit weird though" he muttered, almost to himself.

"Hmm?" Rachel looked up at him curiously, not quite catching his words. He fumbled a little bit.

"Well-uh. I said it was a bit weird...you know...you calling me 'babe'" Rachel flushed red again; sure that Finn was going to cause her face to go that colour permanently.

"Yeah..." she mumbled. "It felt weird saying it" she confessed, looking back up to Finn's face; his eyes watching her curiously. "I won't say it again" she tried, to which Finn nodded.

"Ok" he turned his attention back to the path. "I always thought it was weird when people said 'babe' and 'baby'" he said, as if to himself. Rachel nodded along with him.

"Yeah. I must agree. There are many terms of endearment, but those in particular I am not overly fond of"

She sighed contently as they continued walking, arm in arm, through the rain. She started playing with his sleeve as they continued towards an undetermined destination.

* * *

><p>"Finn?" Rachel whispered, after what seemed like a rather indeterminate length of time. She was looking around her curiously; they were currently wandering through a quiet residential area.<p>

"Yea Rach?" he replied, looking down at her, noting her expression which was almost too cute to ignore; the raindrops dripping slowly down the contours of her face.

"Where are we actually going?" she flashed him a toothy smile as he let out a small chuckle.

"Um, I'm not entirely sure" he looked around him, eyeing the houses carefully. After a moment his eyes opened wider in realisation. "I think we're near where Puck lives" he pondered, still looking around him. Rachel clung to him more tightly at his words.

"Really?" she looked around her cautiously; part of her expecting to see a tramp or a mugger to jump out at them; she knew Puck was a bit of a tough guy, and so stereotypes would suggest he lived in a rather rough neighbourhood. However, most of the houses looked rather clean and proper; with white picket fences, tidy lawns with gnomes, and if it weren't pouring with rain, Rachel would have assumed there would be a number of children playing in the streets.

"Yeah, that's his house" Finn nodded towards a house at the end of the street; looking no different to the others. Rachel nodded.

"Oh. Well it looks nice" she offered. Finn paused, looking down at Rachel in slight confusion.

"So wait...you've never seen Puck's house before?" Rachel looked up at him, a similar look of confusion etched into her features.

"No...why? Should I have?" she questioned.

"Well..." Finn scratched the back of his neck with his free hand, averting his gaze as he thought about it. "...didn't you ever go see him when you two were..." he glanced back down at her, her expression one of innocent curiosity. "you know...when you two were...together" he almost whispered the last word, seemingly uncomfortable with the subject matter. Rachel's eyes grew wide in realisation, looking back at the house in question.

"Oh" she laughed nervously. "No. No. I never went to his house. He came round mine a couple of times but...that was it" She shrugged as she turned her face back to Finn, who swallowed hard. "You know we only dated for less than a week, right Finn?" she noted, trying to comfort him as she watched his gaze return to her.

"Yeah...but still" he shrugged; failing to elaborate.

"And you know the only reason we even dated one another was because we couldn't have who we really wanted" she murmured, watching as Finn looked at her curiously. He seemed a little concerned.

"Who did you really want?" he questioned a little dumbly, pulling her closer to him. She let out a chuckle.

"You, silly!" she laughed as his expression lifted and that familiar half-grin stretched across his face.

"Oh!" He let out a short laugh. "What about Puck? Who did he want?" he looked to her again, seeing her fidget a little.

"Quinn" she muttered. Finn felt that familiar, yet dull sting in his heart, but soon shrugged it off.

"Makes sense I suppose" he said, as if to himself. He turned his face back to Rachel, letting a genuine smile creep onto his face. "At least you both got what you wanted..." He let out a short sigh. "And so did I..." Rachel blushed again, but didn't avert her gaze; she instead stepped up onto her tiptoes, cupped his cheeks and placed a short but intense kiss on his lips. Finn froze for a second before reciprocating, and after a minute they both retracted, Rachel's face practically glowing. Smirking, Finn gave her a squeeze, before they carried on walking round the block. She smiled to herself at the realisation that she and Finn had just had their first kiss in the rain...

* * *

><p>The rain finally relented as both Finn and Rachel found themselves wandering back to her house. The conversation had been buzzing almost the entire journey, and they just felt so comfortable together; part of Rachel didn't want to go back home; she would have been quite happy wandering around Lima with Finn on her arm for the rest of the summer. She told Finn this in a moment of weakness.<p>

He let out a loud laugh.

"Well as fun as that sounds, I think we'd get a little tired" Rachel just shrugged as they rounded the corner to her neighbourhood.

"I'm sure we'd forget about it eventually" she suggested, scrunching her nose as she chuckled. Finn nodded in agreement. Just then, as if on cue, Finn's stomach let out an almighty rumble. He clutched his abdomen, his eyes wide as he did so. Rachel mimicked his expression before bursting into a fit of giggles. She caught her breath and patted Finn's stomach. "But I don't think you could possibly forget about that" she teased, looking up at him with stars in her eyes. Finn smirked.

"Yeah...I do get kinda hungry sometimes" he confessed, shrugging innocently.

"You're hungry ALL the time Finn!" Rachel giggled, snuggling her head against his shoulder as they walked up the path to her house.

As they reached the front door she reluctantly released herself from his grasp and unlocked the door. She sighed as she stepped inside, turning to face Finn as he stood on the doorstep.

"Today's been lovely Finn. I had such a great time" she looked up at the sky. "Despite the weather" she chuckled; as did Finn.

"Nah. It's just a little rain. Never hurt anybody" he shrugged. Rachel tucked a piece of hair behind her ear.

"Did you want to-um-did you want to come in?" Finn shuffled a little on his feet, before eyeing his watch.

"Nah, I'm sorry Rach. I should probably get back. I promised my mom I'd do some more chores today" he shrugged, looking a little down heartened. Rachel smiled nonetheless.

"Of course. I'll have to wait another day to see you then" Finn beamed as she leant forward, subtly inviting him to kiss her; he obliged, reaching down and meeting his lips with hers; feeling that familiar warmth rush through him and loving the feel of Rachel's plush lips on his. She pulled away slowly, giving him a slightly dazed look before pecking his lips once more and retreating back. She gave him a small wave as he stood there; slightly dazed and dumbstruck.

"Bye Finn" she chimed, going to close the door.

"Bye Rach" he finally managed, stepping down the path; every now and then glancing back as she waved goodbye to him from the front door. He lifted his hand to wave before turning down the road and walking towards his own house.

She watched his tall, broad frame disappear all the way from her drive to the end of the road; until he was completely out of sight.

* * *

><p><em>Yet again, fluffy and soppy. But I just can't help but right it like that. I really hope I'm not going too OOC, especially when this is supposed to be set in their Sophmore summer. But I'll let you guys be the judges.<em>

_Thanks for reading and as always, reviews are well accepted!_


End file.
